Jessica's cancer fundraiser hits top speed
A schoolgirl who got on her marks in honour of her grandfather and brave friend has received support from around the world.
Eight-year-old Jessica Brown, from Bratton, Telford, ran 15km over five days over the Easter holidays to raise more than £1,100 for Cancer Research UK.
The St Peter's C of E Primary School pupil chose the charity in support of her five-year-old friend, who is battling Leukaemia, a family friend who died of cancer and her granddad Bill Wigley-Smith, who died six years ago.
Jessica recorded her runs on Strava and posted them online, gathering attention, support and donations from as far away as Australia and Canada.
Her mum Claire Wigley-Smith said: "She was initially only trying to raise £50. I think that's the power of social media. We had lots of friends share it. I'm very proud of her."
She added: "She was only two when her granddad died but, weirdly, she remembers a lot about him.
"She wanted to do something for charity. We never expected it to do so well. She had a lot of support from her pals. Some of them came and ran with her on different days, so it was really nice to see everyone get behind her."
You can still support Jessica's fundraising efforts by donating at justgiving.com/fundraising/claire-wigley-smith
