Update! Bride-to-be asks guests to buy her raffle tickets instead of wedding presents
Congratulations to this wonderful bride and groom and best wishes from all at DCCF.
We are delighted to bring you news that the raffle which took place instead of having presents for Kay and Gary Ridout on their wedding day on 20th May raised a fantastic total of £405.40 for Dorset Cancer Care Foundation! Massive thanks to the bride and groom.
Some images of the lovely sunny, happy day are below:
Previously:
A bride-to-be from Shillingstone has asked her wedding guests to refrain from buying presents and take part in a charity raffle for local cancer patients instead.
Kay Farrell will wed her partner Gary Ridout at Holyrood Church in the village on May 19, and during the reception at the nearby Portman Hall, the couple will hold a prize raffle with all proceeds going to Dorset Cancer Care Foundation (DCCF).
Mum-of-three Kay explained: “Many of my family and friends have experienced cancer. Some have even lost their lives to it.
“One of my best friends Ali Campbell is thankfully winning her battle against it, so I thought: “Gary and I have everything we need, why not use this happy occasion to help people who are fighting cancer?”
Big-hearted Kay is no stranger to holding charity raffles – she has forgone presents on two of her previous birthdays to raise money for cancer charities.
She continued: “Everyone loves a raffle and we have collected some great prizes for the wedding day, including beauty treatments and bottles of bubbly.
“My friends and family are always happy to support me and I think it will be a fun addition to the festivities.”
Dorset Cancer Care Foundation was formed in 2012 to help people in the county cope with the financial pressures of the disease.
The charity gives grants to help people pay for everything from transport to and from hospital for treatment, to household bills, accommodation costs and much needed short breaks.
Kay added: “My friend Ali who also lives in Shillingstone, was diagnosed with head and neck cancer almost exactly a year ago and was helped by DCCF.”
It took a team of surgeons 12-and-a -half hours to cut away Ali’s cancer and use flesh and bone from her left shoulder to reconstruct the top left of her mouth. She was then in a medically-induced coma for four days.
Kay said: “DCCF helped Ali afford some car repairs and funded her petrol costs to and from the hospital, so afterwards she invited people to ‘sponsor’ her through six weeks of radiotherapy, with all proceeds going to the charity. She has since raised over £1500.
“It’s Ali who will be running the raffle on my wedding day.
“She is a wonderful lady and I’m so thrilled she will be here to celebrate this lovely day with us.”
Ali, a former crochet designer, teacher and blogger, said: “It’s fabulous that Kay and Gary are using their wedding day to help DCCF.
“You don’t realise until you actually have cancer that it can make everyday things like paying the mortgage and the bills and even affording the weekly shop, incredibly difficult. So having a local charity step forward and offer to help is a huge weight off your mind.
“Kay and Gary’s wedding day will spread a lot of joy to a lot of people.”
Heartfelt thanks to Kay and Gary for this amazing generous gesture and our best wishes for your future happiness from all at DCCF.
