A BOY from Rhyl has reached his target of raising £3,000 for the hospice which cared for his father, who died of cancer in June.
Jacob Allman-Whitehouse, eight, lost dad Craig on June 11 following a two-and-a-half-year battle with the illness.
Before Craig died, Jacob told his father that he wanted to raise £3,000 for St Asaph-based St Kentigern Hospice, who helped not only Craig, but his family, and are continuing to do so.
St Kentigern organised a variety of activities for Craig and Jacob to enjoy together, and Jacob’s GoFundMe page currently has a total of £3,075, exceeding its £3,000 goal.
Jacob’s mum and Craig’s former partner, Kerry, was understandably full of admiration for her son.
Kerry said: “He was absolutely over the moon (to reach £3,000). It was very unexpected for him. There was a few tears, and a lot of happy shouting!
“He just wanted to do it so that other children who are losing or have lost a parent can plan and have activities before they pass away (at St Kentigern).
“St Kentigern were amazing at planning activities for Jacob and his dad to do, so Jacob has those memories.
“We had told Jacob that his dad was passing away, so every day was precious and a new memory for him.
“They did cinema days, they brought animals in so Craig and Jacob, who’s a massive animal lover, could pet them together, and activities in the hospice, like bowls and colouring.
“It was just about spending their days together, no matter what they were doing. They were great at supporting us.”
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Jacob organised a car boot sale last month to collect donations for the cause, which raised £84.
Kerry added that more fundraising events are planned during the rest of the summer, one of which their family are particularly excited about.
“He’s been spreading the word about what had happened, and we were planning on doing loads of activities, but I think, because of the story, people were just happy to donate to Jacob.
“He cleared out his bedroom and did a car boot sale a couple of weeks ago, and has more activities planned in the summer as well.
“He wants to do a sponsored walk, and we’re planning a sponsored waxing of his stepdad’s chest, so we’re all looking forward to that one the most!
“But I think it’s touched people because he was so young to lose his dad (Jacob had only turned eight a few weeks prior to Craig’s death), and Craig was so young to lose his life.”
Michaella Brannan, fundraising manager at St Kentigern, added: “Jacob has been so brave and has shown amazing spirit with his challenges.
"The money he has raised will go a long way to helping us provide the very best care and support to patients and families when they need it most.
"We are extremely grateful to Jacob’s family, and thank all Jacob’s kind sponsors for their generosity.”
You can donate to Jacob’s fundraiser at: www.gofundme.com/f/tnfj92-my-daddy.
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