Friends and family of a young patient who passed away from a rare cancer have raised more than £1300 for the Sandra Chapman Centre at the James Paget University Hospital.
A total of £1343.75 was handed over to the Sandra Chapman Centre today (Tuesday, 1 August), in memory of Aaron Wright, who passed away on 23rd May 2017, at just 22 years, from Pseudomyxoma Peretone, a rare form of bowel cancer.
Aaron’s mum Sonia and family friend Susan Julings, wanted to celebrate Aaron’s short but precious life and mark the fifth anniversary of him passing, so for the last year they have been fundraising for equipment for the Sandra Chapman Centre, where Aaron received his chemotherapy treatment.
Donations from friends and family have raised £500 and a further £837 has been raised from the sale of Susan’s handmade greeting cards at local craft fairs and from her website
Aaron went to school at Sir John Leman High School in Beccles; after completing his ‘A’ levels he worked for PCE Automation Ltd and was studying for his HNC/HND in Engineering.
He completed his Duke of Edinburgh Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards and in February 2016 went to St James Palace where he met the Duke himself.
In May 2016, he completed his Diamond Award that involved a challenging 60 miles walk from Salhouse (where he originally started his bronze award) to Carlton Colville, over 2 days. He raised money for the Duke of Edinburgh charity. He was very fit and healthy, playing football and rowing regularly, usually both in one morning.
Despite his illness Aaron still wanted to do more and had a fundraising page for Cancer Research UK which raised over £5,500. He shaved off his gorgeous curly hair to make his hair loss stage less traumatic, before his first treatment. At the same time he was raising awareness for a charity that relies on donations for vital research - crucial to helping others in a similar situation to him.
The money raised by Aaron’s friends and family will help purchase clinical trolleys for the Sandra Chapman Centre.