A keen young runner has handed over a £10,000 cheque to the north-east hospital staff caring for his sick six-year-old cousin.
On Hogmanay 2019, “pretty much as the bells were ringing,” seriously ill Harris Morrison was rushed to Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital (Rach).
Since then, staff have worked around the clock to care for the youngster and provide cancer treatment.
In the weeks after Harris was admitted, his 21-year-old cousin Donald Fraser decided to try running their first marathon with pal Max Stancliffe, 17, on Skye.
They wanted to raise money for the Rach oncology ward at the same time, and were left shocked by how much support they received.
Mr Fraser, from Harrapool, and is currently studying sports coaching and development at Nescol’s Aberdeen campus.
He said: “We set up a crowdfunding page with an initial goal of £500.
“Within around 40 minutes we’d beaten it, and thought ‘we could be onto something here’ so kept going and we ended up raising £10,000.
“I’m absolutely ecstatic about it.
“My aunt and uncle spend lots of time in the hospital and with the workers that help to make their days easier.
“Having gone through a year of pain, I’m hoping it’s brought some positivity.”
On marathon day itself, the crowdfunding total was sitting at just below £5,000 and Mr Fraser was feeling the pressure to perform.
“Max and I ended up having completely different days,” he said.
“I had a nervous morning and consumed my breakfast when I woke up – but I left it in the shower, I was so anxious.”
The pair started the journey together, but Mr Fraser said he could feel himself struggling around the eight-mile mark.
“I knew Max was hoping for a quick time, so told him to go on ahead – I just wanted to get through it, even if that meant taking a little longer,” Mr Fraser said.
Max crossed the finish line in four hours and six minutes, while Mr Fraser followed at 5:34.
He added: “That night, the total just kept going up and up and up.
“Overall we ended up raising £10,000, and hopefully this will help Harris and other children in the future, too.”
