A nine-year-old boy left devastated when he lost his grandfather to a rare form of cancer has raised more than £1,300 for a charity he hopes will one day find a cure for the disease.
Benji Albert, of Manor Drive, Whetstone, took on an 11-mile walk to raise money for MPD Voice, a charity that carries out research in to Myeloproliferative Disorders – a range of disorders affecting the blood and bone marrow.
A cancerous strain of the disease took the life of Benji’s grandfather Haim Kolirin in 2008 at the age of just 61.
The pair were very close and after recently feeling grief and loss once again, Benji decided to do something positive in his grandfather’s memory.
He settled on a walk that took the primary school pupil along an 11-mile route from his home in Whetstone to Camden Town.
Joined by his parents, Lianne Kolirin and Simon Albert, the dedicated charity walker raised money through sponsorship from friends and family and smashed his early fundraising targets – despite having his tonsils out two weeks before.
The Wolfson Hillel Primary School pupil said: “I thought I might raise £50 or even £100 and I was really amazed when it just kept getting bigger – I’m really happy.
“The walk was tiring but I didn’t want to stop. The thought of my granddad made me determined to finish.
“My grandfather’s doctor works for the charity and I just wanted to do something for them so they can hopefully find a cure.”
The young trekker followed in his father’s footsteps by carrying out the charity walk, as Simon runs a company that organises worldwide fundraising expeditions, including some for Comic Relief earlier this year.
Mother Lianne, who has retained her father’s surname, said: “We’re incredibly proud of him. He has been very upset recently but this has really helped and he knows it has been an amazing tribute to his grandfather.”
Donations are still coming in to Benji’s Just Giving webpage and contributions are still welcome – though the energetic fundraiser admits he may not stop there.
He said: “I’m looking to maybe climb Mount Snowdon before the end of this year and when I get older I’d really like to go on one of my dad’s trips.
“This was really good though and I’m looking forward to telling everyone at school and thanking everyone who donated.”
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