Easter Ross glamping prize set to bring tragic teen's dream a step closer; Ben Saunders Foundation gets a boost from Delny Glamping initiative
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A luxury break at an Easter Ross glamping site has been won by a lucky woman for a very special cause.
The competition, run by Claire and Paul Daniels who operate Delny Glamping, near Invergordon, was spurred by the tragic death of a teenage family friend.
Ben Saunders died aged only 18 in August after suffering a very rare form of cancer in his heart. He was friends with the couple’s daughter, Elizabeth, when they lived in Bath.
They raffled a luxury weekend in their most popular pod for a cause that was close to his heart.
The break was won by a woman living in England, and the Daniels now hope to come up with more ways to support the Ben Saunders Foundation.
Mrs Daniels said: “Thank you to everyone that took part in our competition. We still don’t have a final total of our fundraising and we hope to do more in future.
“We have everything we need, and it has been a great season showing the pods off to people from all over the UK. The support was overwhelming. Every donation meant so much. We cannot wait to meet our winner.”
To top it all, Mrs Daniels also got a famous friend to send a message to Ben’s family.
She said: “I contacted Anthony Head, known for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the prime minister in Little Britain and the Nescafe coffee commercials, to film a short message of encouragement to Ben’s family.
“I think it really boosted them in their efforts.They are just a normal family dealing with extraordinary times, and it was lovely that Anthony filmed the message for them.”
She added: “When Ben started on a course of chemotherapy, his family looked more widely at what they could do. He was a wonderful young man who was always thinking of others. He was so strong emotionally about his illness and so courageous. He wanted to raise money to help others.
“While he was ill, a charity funded a trip for Ben and his school friends to Centre Parcs. This had a huge impact on Ben and one of his last wishes was for a foundation to be created in his name to provide holidays for other people in a similar situation.”
His family’s dream to buy a holiday home raised £50,000 within weeks.
Related: Tragic teen's big-hearted dream inspires Easter Ross couple to offer a helping hand
