Lewis inspires supergran Jackie (From St Helens Star)

Lewis inspires supergran Jackie

12:30pm Thursday 2nd February 2012 in News By Daniel Webster

CARING couple Jackie and Paul Rawlinson bagged nearly £500 for the Down’s Syndrome association thanks to golden-hearted Morrisons customers.

The bag packing event led by husband and wife Jackie and Paul and a team of enthusiastic helpers at the Boundary Road store, raked in extra for the association, much more than they were expecting.

Jackie, 55, said the fundraising event at Morrisons was one of many planned for the year ahead, and expressed her delight at how well it went.

She told the Star: “We’ve never done anything like it before, so we were a bit shy at first, but the staff were absolutely fantastic and the generosity of the people coming through the tills was overwhelming.”

In April Jackie will be looking to take the fundraising an extra mile – an extra 26.2 miles to be precise, by dusting off her running shoes and taking part in her second Virgin London Marathon.

The Reeve Court Retirement Village worker revealed that her motivation to run the marathon and raise money for the Down’s syndrome Association stems from her ‘lovely’ grandson Lewis, who was diagnosed with Down’s Syndrome two years ago.

She said: “I’ll be running my second marathon for the Down’s Syndrome Association because it’s something that is very close to our hearts.

“Lewis was born with Down’s Syndrome, and it was quite an emotional rollercoaster at the time.

“The charity has helped us a lot and helped us come to terms with it and get rid of some of the myths about Down’s Syndrome.”

Jackie, of Eccleston Park, is well on her way to hitting her target of £1,500.

If you would like to sponsor her donations can be made by visiting her money-giving page at virginmoneygiving.com/ rawlinson.