Fundraiser in daughter's memory hits £175,000

A fundraising appeal to help a hospital ward treating patients with brain tumours has raised almost £175,000.

Ruth and Tony Knowles, from Sutton on Sea, Lincolnshire, launched their fundraising campaign to support the neurosurgical department at Hull Royal Infirmary in 1998 after the death of their 22-year-old daughter Emma-Jayne, who was cared for by nurses there.

The couple were awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) in the New Year Honours List in 2014 and, although Mr Knowles died last year, Mrs Knowles has continued their work.

During a visit on Tuesday, she handed over the latest fundraising cheque for £10,573.

She also presented Mr Knowles’ British Empire Medal to staff in recognition of their work.

Mrs Knowles told the team: "You are worth your weight in gold. There is no need to thank me. I do this because I love to do it."

During the visit, Mrs Knowles was reunited with some of the nurses who had looked after Emma-Jayne while she was in hospital.

Sean Lyons, chairman of Humber Health Partnership, said: “We are extremely grateful to Mrs Knowles for her unwavering support of our neurosurgical team.

"The money raised by Mr and Mrs Knowles has meant that, over these past 26 years since Emma-Jayne’s sad death, we have been able to purchase the latest technology to help us save patients’ lives and assist their recovery after surgery.”

Emma-Jayne was admitted to Hull Royal Infirmary in April 1998 after an MRI scan confirmed she had a rare brain tumour affecting just one in 1.5m people.

She underwent 35 radiotherapy sessions but, because the tumour was too deep in her brain for surgeons to operate, she died in December 1998, six days before Christmas and two weeks before her 23rd birthday.

Her parents started fundraising at her funeral, raising £1,100. Since then, they have continued to make donations to the hospital after a variety of charitable events including a bikeathon, now an annual event, sponsored walks and running races.

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