A MONTH after the Asian tsunami claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, the effort to raise cash for the victims shows no sign of letting up in Wyre Forest.

Events taking place over the weekend include a sponsored "fire walk" by "terrified" Kidderminster grandmother, Jan Ricketts, and a bring and buy sale at St Peter's Church in Birchen Coppice.

Severn Valley Railway has also pledged to donate £1 for every fare-paying passenger who travels along the Kidderminster to Bridgnorth stream heritage line on Saturday and Sunday.

Approximately 800 people would normally visit during the weekend but SVR staff hope to make a four-figure donation by encouraging "as many people as possible" to get on board.

Marketing manager, John Leach, said: "On its own, £1,000 may not be a huge amount but it's the collective strength of donations like this which are helping to rebuild the countries and the lives of those who survived the awful tsunami ordeal."

As well as the bring and buy sale, on Monday, February 7, a vigil is taking place at St Peter's Church, from 6.30pm, on Sunday.

Vicar, James Stewart, said it would be "a candle-lit open time" for people of any religion - or none - to use how they wanted.

Meanwhile, rock cakes were the key to a successful fund-raiser, last Wednesday, which raised £1,370 in two hours.

Mum-of-two, Jenny Nott, who hosted the coffee morning at her Rock farmhouse, said the event - which she initially hoped would raise £500 - "grew like topsy" because of the generous family, friends and neighbours, who baked more than 100 cakes and donated 250 prizes for a tombola.

Children across the district also played their part in the Asian earthquake appeal, last Friday, when fund-raisers were synchronised in a Worcestershire County Council initiative.

One original pursuit was "gunging" the teachers at King Charles I School.

Stacey-Jo Branford, 16, who helped organise the event, which raised £580 after pupils paid to vote for which teacher was gunged, said: "The three teachers took it really well. Some of them came out with plastic bags on but we made them take them off so they bore the full brunt of it."

A collection by the British Red Cross outside Tesco in Kidderminster town centre earlier this month also raised £2,844.44 for the appeal.