A Leeds children’s cancer charity that is helping an eight-year-old boy battle leukaemia has certainly left its mark on his grateful parents.
Eddie and Lisa Wilson were so moved by the care Candlelighters gave to their son Ethan that they decided to do something special to raise cash for the cause.
Dedicated dad Eddie, 40, now has a permanent reminder of the charity after getting a tattoo of the Candlelighters logo on his forearm.
And mum Lisa, 29, shaved off all of her hair to boost the fundraising total.
So far, the couple has raised £1,775 for the charity based at Leeds General Infirmary.
Lisa told the Yorkshire Evening Post: “Ethan is starting to lose his hair because of the treatment he is having.
“I started thinking about his hair loss and decided I wanted to do the head shave for him.
“He asked me why I wanted to be bald and I explained that we wanted to help Candlelighters.”
Ethan and his parents visit the children’s oncology and haematology ward in Leeds up to twice a week.
Lisa added: “He gets very nervous about coming here but the staff calm him down and do activities with him.
“They are brilliant and I end up chatting away to them as well.”
Family friend Rachel Hirst also got a tattoo of the charity’s logo and the family has hosted a raffle, tombola, cake sale and treasure hunt to raise more cash.
Lisa added: “We didn’t think we would raise this much.
“The support we have had from the community and family and friends has been fantastic.”
Dad Eddie said: “The tattoo is my fifth but it was definitely the most painful.
“But talking to the tattooist at the Spektra Tattoo Gallery about why I was getting it done spurred me on.”
Eve Fayle, fundraising assistant at Candlelighters, said: “We don’t have a lot of parents doing head shaves and getting tattoos but it is great to see people doing something so brave to show their support.
“It is touching to have people go to such lengths to raise money for the cause.”
Candlighters is a Yorkshire charity and money raised stays in Yorkshire.
Comments