Fantastic!

Now the appeal bank balance stands at a massive £256,092.

The total has been boosted thanks to the tireless efforts of both the Swindon and Marlborough committees.

Cash from their fundraising events throughout the year is always paid to the main fund in December. The Swindon committee raised £33,500, while Marlborough brought in £9,100.

The appeal was launched in March last year with the aim of reaching £600,000 in three years. To stay on track the community would have to come up with £200,000 a year.

But as ever, Swindonians have come up trumps when it comes to helping those who need support.

The last 10 months of weird and wacky fundraising events have kept the money rolling in.

Townsfolk young and old have taken our appeal to heart. People in Swindon and Marlborough have organised sponsored walks, runs, cycles, climbs, discos, dances and swims. Others have baked cakes, brewed tea, ground coffee, dressed up and down, and even stripped off completely.

The money will pay for two Macmillan nurses and a consultant in palliative care for Swindon for three years, after which the NHS will fund the posts.

Macmillan Cancer Relief does not set out to cure the disease. But the charity provides much-needed care and support to those with cancer, as well as their friends and family.

Vanessa Davey has touched the lives of more than 500 cancer patients and their families in Swindon, which is why we chose her to be the face of our campaign.

Vanessa, who is the clinical nurse specialist in palliative care at the Great Western Hospital, said: "It's just fantastic that the appeal is receiving so much support.

"A lot of people have said to me that they have seen me in the paper so it is obviously reaching far and wide."

Appeal manager Graziella Campisano said: "'I am just overwhelmed. If I'd been told that we would have raised over a

quarter of a million in just 10 months I wouldn't have believed it.

"We have done it because the community and local business have taken this appeal to their hearts, supported us from the very beginning and are continuing to support us."

Evening Advertiser readers have helped raise cash in a variety of ways. Macmillan supporters in Marlborough raised £1,400 by holding a street collection and a car boot sale at Marlborough Town Football Club's ground in Elcot Road. The sale, in August, was organised by darts players who play at Marlborough Town FC.

The darts enthusiasts were spurred into action by Vanessa Hillier, who is on the team and also chairs Macmillan's Marlborough fundraising branch.

Two months before, the players raised £400 for the appeal by holding a beetle drive.

A group of Swindon-based Celtic fans helped boost the appeal by £440 in October.

The Swindon Shamrock Supporters Club hosted a sporting auction at the Tap and Barrel pub, with star lots including a signed 1988 Celtic centenary ball and a Swindon Town shirt signed by County Ground favourite Sam Parkin.

The annual Castle Mountain bike ride, in June, raised £7,738 thanks to the pedalling skills of more than 300 cyclists. For information on this year's bike ride call Jill Greenaway on 01793 521630.

Members of Slimming World, in Haydon Wick, raised £300 in May in memory of Mary McGill, a former club member who died from cancer last year, aged 55.

Some 81 swimmers at Swindon Amateur Swimming Club (SASC) raised the magnificent sum of £2,651 in a sponsored swim in October.

Gillian Thornton, chairwoman of Swindon committee,said: "We have all thoroughly enjoyed the fundraising and we are absolutely thrilled that we've reached this tremendous total so quickly. A big thank you to all who have supported the appeal."

Anyone wanting to help the campaign can call the appeal office on Swindon 601636.

aemery@newswilts.co.uk

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