Fund-raising walk in honour of Finley

John-Paul Coe arrives in Cofton Hackett during his epic 108 mile walk in memory of baby Finley. (s)

A KIND-HEARTED Manchester man put his best foot foward and walked more than 100 miles in six days in memory of his Droitwich cousin’s new-born baby boy.

John Paul-Coe embarked on a 108 mile walk from Manchester to Worcester to honour the memory of his second cousin Finley Anthony Webster who tragically lost his battle for life aged just a few months old in April.

His parents, cousin Tony Brian and his partner Donna Webster from Droitwich, were looked after at Ronald McDonald House in Birmingham while Finley was under the care of doctors and nurses at Birmingham Children’s Hospital

John-Paul had initially hoped to raise £1,000 for Ronald McDonald House Charities, which provides free ‘home away from home’ accommodation to families with seriously ill children in hospital.

But the kind-hearted customer care agent’s JustGiving page has been inundated with donations meaning John-Paul now hopes to raise a staggering £5,000 for the cause.

“I wanted to do something that would honour Finley’s memory and benefit the charity that helped Tony and Donna during such a difficult time,” he said.

“The Ronald McDonald House in Birmingham enabled them to be near Finley and for that the family is extremely grateful.”

John-Paul’s epic challenge began at the charity’s brand new purpose built 60 bedroom house in Manchester on June 24 with

an eight mile walk to the city’s airport.

A 19 mile walk followed on June 25 from the airport to Middlewich before a further 18.9miles were covered the following day (June 26) which saw John-Paul arrive in Stoke.

He covered a staggering 41.3 miles in two days from Stoke to Birmingham before arriving in Droitwich last Friday (June 29) following a further 17.4 mile hike.

John-Paul’s emotional journey in honour of baby Finley came to a close last Saturday (June 30) when he arrived at the charities Worcester house after a final six mile walk.

The ambitious ambler carried with him a stock of high-calorie foods, energy drinks and a Ronald McDonald House Charities collection bucket. He stayed overnight at local hotels to catch up on much-needed rest.

To make a donation, visit John-Paul’s JustGiving page at www.justgiving.com/john-paul-coe. Visit www.rmhc.org.uk for more information about the Ronald McDonald House charity.

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