Party was mum's way to say thank-you

Published 13 Jan 2012 09:30

A HELENSBURGH mum - whose toddler son tragically died from meningitis - was "overwhelmed" by the amount raised at a charity event.

The event raised money for the Meningitis Association Scotland and The Vale of Leven Hospital Cancer Fund.

It was also a chance for Leslie Mooney, a dental hygienist at Faslane, to celebrate her 50th birthday and, at the same time, her son James' 18th birthday.

But for Leslie and James, the occasion was more than just a birthday celebration.

Thirteen years ago, Leslie's youngest son, John, tragically died from meningitis at age two, and for the past 10 years the Helensburgh woman has been a cancer patient at the Vale of Leven Hospital's Oncology Unit.

Held in the base's Senior Rates' Mess, the night, held by the base's dental department, attracted more than 200 guests.

Leslie said: "Both these organisations have been a great support to me and my family and I wanted to give something back.

"The fundraising part of the evening consisted of a race night, auctions and raffles where we raised £4,500.

Back in October, the base's dental department got behind Leslie's charity drive, organising a cake bake outside the military site's medical centre.

The event was a huge success raising around £1,313 for the two charities.

Since then, the department has been busy gathering more cash from donations and independent raffles, bringing the grand total so far up to £9,913.

Leslie also works ain two other dental practices, one in Alexandria and one in Drymen, both owned by Margaret Colvin.

Margaret and her staff have got behind the fundraising effort too and have collected around £500 in donations from patients and raised £200 raffling electric toothbrushes.

FULL STORY IN THIS WEEK'S ADVERTISER

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This article appeared in Helensburgh Advertiser 12 Jan 12

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