A nine-year-old cancer survivor is making the most of her time in lockdown by helping to continue the fight against cancer.
Not one to sit still, Agatha King has mobilised her little brother Bacchus and sister Meredith and the three have set to work with a vacuum cleaner and dusters to raise funds for Cancer Research UK.
With the backing of mum Karen and electronics engineer dad Kevin, 50, the children are donating money from their household chores to vital research.
The Cupar family has good reason to back the charity as it will soon be three years since Agatha, a pupil at St Columbas RC Primary School, was given the all clear after being diagnosed with leukaemia.
They are now rallying people across Fife to clean up and cash in for the charity, which expects to lose up to 25% of its fundraising income this year as a direct result of the coronavirus crisis.
Karen, 44, a teacher at a special needs school, said: “We’re so grateful for the treatment that saved Agatha’s life.
“Charities like Cancer Research UK and the research that they fund, will be hard hit by the current situation and it upsets me to think about what this might mean for people affected by cancer in the years to come.
“We can all play a part in helping to lessen the impact, so I’m proud of the way Agatha, Bacchus and Meredith have embraced the fundraising challenge and I hope others will do what they can.
“Plus, with all the extra time we’re spending indoors, the house is extra messy so I’m grateful for the help.”
Agatha was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia when she was just four and Karen was 16 weeks pregnant.
She underwent two and a half years of treatment and also spent time in intensive care due to an infection.
Karen added: “In a way, because we have spent time in isolation before, we have had some training for life in lockdown.
“We’ve been shielding because of the fear that one of us might have to go to hospital.
“Although Agatha is well now, we continue to want to do everything we can to ensure families like ours can have more tomorrows.”
Cancer Research UK has put together a pack of fundraising ideas that can be carried out at home, including virtual quizzes, live-streaming music nights and sponsored haircuts or head shaves.
The charity’s spokesperson in Scotland, Linda Summerhayes, said: “We are so grateful to the King family for their dedication to the cause.
“Our supporters are completely redefining the meaning of charity begins at home.”
