THE LOVING family and friends of a four-year-old boy whose mother passed away in July have been left astounded by the generosity of Redditch folk.
25-year-old Katie Sadler passed away on July 12, leaving behind her young son Brandon.
Now the youngster’s uncle, Tony Sadler, has joined forces with Katie’s best friend Victoria Bates, who has organised a fund-raising event for the child this evening (August 28) at South Redditch Social Club at 7pm.
The evening started as a gathering of Katie’s nearest-and-dearest to remember their friend and relative but things quickly spiralled with more and more people wanting to share their memories.
Victoria said: “I soon realised we would have to change the venue from our local pub to something a bit bigger.
“We currently have 150 people coming.”
But it was Tony’s idea to ask for sponsorship to dye his hair blue which gave the duo the idea to turn the event into a fund-raiser for Brandon.
“I intended to raise about £200,” Tony said. “I’d have been happy with that but we have since collected around £1,300 which will be put into a trust fund for when Brandon’s older.
“My sister and I were very close – there was only two years between us – and she used to love dying her hair.”
Once the idea took hold, Tony and Victoria, along with Victoria’s Mum Sue Roadley, decided to ask the Redditch community to help.
The trio were overwhelmed with the response and have received items including a year’s Sky package and a Porsche Boxster driving experience to auction along with a hoard of hampers and other goods for a raffle.
Sue added how a kind-hearted member of staff at Tesco Oakenshaw gave Brandon a full school uniform and Halfords presented the trio with a brand new bike for him after hearing of his plight.
