A SERIOUSLY-ill boy from Malvern had a day to remember after a fun-day raised more than £12,000.

Organisers said that Jay Day, named for seven-year-old Jay Hitchins and held at Malvern Town Football Club, showed the town at its best.

“There were four of us who arranged it – me, Clare Almond, Kirsty Smith and Russell Petty, but it was the people of Malvern who made it a success,” said co-organiser Natasha Arnold.

“We collected £900 on the door and we were charging adults £1 each, so that gives you some idea of how many people we had in.

“It had rained on the Saturday, but we were lucky and it stayed fine on the day.

“We had a cake stall and people made lots of the most beautiful cakes and they all got sold. It was amazing.

“It was such a great event and it showed Malvern at its best. We’ve got to thank Mandy King and Stan Cullen at the football club for all their help, but we’ve also got to thank everyone else who made it such a great day.”

There was plenty of entertainment and chances for fund-raising during the day with raffles and tombolas, barbecue and games, a rounders tournament, tug-of-war and much more. Some of the most daring people went in for waxing or head-shaving.

An impressive £5,000 will go to the Ronald McDonald House, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, which has provided accommodation for Jay and his family while he has been treated for neuroblastoma, a malignant cancerous tumour. A room will be named in his honour for a year. The rest of the cash will go to the family to make Jay’s life as comfortable as possible.

Family friend Diane Clark, who contributed a cake to the cake stall, said she was delighted it had gone so well. “It really does show that Malvern has brilliant community spirit. We should all be very proud.”