A TRIO of Pershore Town footballers tackled a new challenge – to get their legs waxed to show their support for a schoolgirl fighting leukaemia.
Sam Clark, Dan Noke and Jake Cavens all went through the painful procedure after helping the Plum to victory in last Saturday’s game against AFC Bridgnorth to raise more than £2,000 for the family of eight-year-old Lily May Filmer.
The club has already rallied to campaign try to find a stem cell transplant match for Lily May after holding a swab drive at the ground.
Organised by Jacqui Marler, Ness Haller and Rachel Joines, the DKMS drive on March 1 collected £5,441.89 and 110 people were swabbed to be potential bone marrow donors.
Lily’s school, St Barnabas in Drakes Broughton, also held an event, with 36 more people getting swabbed, as well as raising £1,300 through a non-uniform day and cake sale.
Pershore Town FC decided to raise some much-needed funds for the family so manager Stuart Watkins persuaded first-team players Sam, Dan and Jake to undergo the hair-raising experience, watched by their team-mates.
Organisers also roped in Under-8s parent Kev Joines and committee member Ad Horton as well as Pershore Round Table chairman Dan Cook who put forward £500 to see the lads ‘get their legs out’.
Badsey beautician Gemma Hobbs worked her magic, together with Jacqui Marler, and the event raised a staggering £2,091.50 which will go directly to the family. Lily May, who lives in the town and is currently in hospital in Birmingham, had been diagnosed with leukaemia three years ago and appeared to have beaten the disease but it returned at Christmas time.
Blood cancer charity DKMS keeps a register of blood stem cell donors to provide lifesaving treatment for patients with a blood cancer or blood disorder.
More than eight million potential donors are registered within DKMS and have given more than 69,000 second chances of life to people diagnosed with blood cancer. Anyone from the age of 18 to 55 and in general good health can register and give a simple swab sample.
Visit www.dkms.org.uk/en for more information.
