Monday 27 July 2009

Leukaemia victim Anton Day's parents donate £10,000 to hospital


Parents of a leukaemia victim have made a £10,000 donation to the hospital that treated their son.
Tony and Vanessa Day’s son Anton died aged 24 last September after losing his five year fight against the disease.
Our 'living memorial' to loving son Anton
The couple of Bulbrook donated the huge sum to The Cancer Centre at John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford after they raised the money through a range of events and from the charity shop.
Tony said: “We’re very proud and very happy and thankful to the people who have helped us raise this money.”
The couple set up the Anton Day Smile Foundation earlier this year and opened their charity shop at Moss End Garden Centre in Warfield on May 24 – the day that would have been Anton’s 25th birthday.
Shop to boost Anton's fund
They gave the cheque to representatives from the hospital on Wednesday last week.
Tony added: “Today is a big step as it is the first bit of money that we’ve given to them.
“It will go towards a garden that’s being built in the middle of the ward Anton was in and it will be called the Anton Day Garden.
“It has to be artificial because people who have what Anton had have a very low immune system so the risk of infection has to be kept to a minimum.”
The garden will cost £50,000 but the hospital is building it and the charity will fund the work in stages.
Charity in memory of Anton Day launched
The Anton Day Smile Foundation is doing better than Tony and Vanessa expected. Initially they hoped to raise around £250 per week from the shop, staffed by volunteers, but they say it is making closer to £600.
Tony said: “The first £10,000 has taken us a while to raise but I think it will only be six to eight weeks before we make the next £10,000.”
I thought I would also include this passage that was written by Antons mum.Very poignant and touching I think ........
766,281,600 seconds
12,771,360 minutes
212,856 hours
8869 days
It seems so long.
but when you think of it in real time, it amounts to
24 years, 133 days 20 hours
That's how long Anton's life was
Far too soon. Far too young. Far too cruel.
Anton knew that he would die young.
He had known it from the day he was first diagnosed.
But he never once gave up, he fought to the very end,
with courage, strength, integrity, a smile always on his face, and true heroism.
He will always be our smiling Hero.
He never complained, he never asked why me?
But a few days before Anton passed away he said to me
"Mum, i believe I know why I am to die young.
"By my doing so many people will be helped by the charity.
"We will be able to give others memories and smiles."
Anton never lost his amazing smile.
And from this the Anton Day Smile Foundation was born.


(Source: Bracknell Forest standard.Website HERE)

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