A COLONY of bunnies will be hopping through Solihull in honour of a children’s cancer charity.
Staff from an insurance and risk management company are taking part in an Easter Bunny Hop on March 28 in aid of Molly Ollys.
The groups will each cover half of the 22-mile route, from Gallagher’s Birmingham site to the charity’s offices in Warwick – dressed as bunnies, swapping over at Solihull.
The latest event planned forms part of the company’s third year of support for Molly Ollys and will take the fundraising total to more than £43,000.
Other fundraising has included everything from bake sales and raffles through to marathons, swimming the equivalent of the English Channel, and even a wing walk.
It’s a cause particularly close to the heart of fundraiser Lisa Sharman whose own son was diagnosed, aged just one, with the same rare Wilms tumour which Molly had.
She said: “We were given the awful news about Fred in September 2018. He then relapsed in August 2019 and had to go through treatment and a stem cell transplant all over again. Thankfully, Fred, now aged six, is leading a healthy life, but we’ll never forget how the charity was there for us.
“Following an operation soon after he was first admitted to hospital, a community nurse came round and gave us an Olly The Brave cuddly lion and some children’s books and explained the work of the charity. It came at a time that felt so awful and surreal for us.
“Fred loved the teddy and I remember reading the story to him again and again between one and three years old.”
Molly Ollys was established in 2011 by Rachel and Tim Ollerenshaw following the death of their eight-year-old daughter Molly from a rare kidney cancer.
The Warwick-based charity has a mascot in the form of a toy lion called Olly The Brave who has his own Hickman line and a detachable mane which helps to explain and normalise the effects of chemotherapy.
Rachel Ollerenshaw said: “We are looking forward to welcoming the Bunny Hoppers when they reach Warwick after a long walk. Please support them if you can and give them a shout out if you see them on their travels. They are an inspiration and show how companies and individuals can make a very positive difference when they truly get stuck in.
“All the team at Gallaghers have been a great support to Molly Ollys now over a number of years fundraising in a variety of ways. They have helped to make a very real difference.”
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