Shannon overwhelmed by £60K donations to cancer appeal

A TERMINALLY ill Coalisland woman said she has been overwhelmed by the public’s generosity and support, after her charity fundraising campaign surpassed £60,000.

The staggering total dwarfs the initial target of £2,500 set by Shannon Whitehouse, who was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, a rare form of bone and soft tissue cancer that affects mainly children and young people.

Last month, the 26-year-old was told her cancer is terminal.

But in a remarkable show of defiance and courage, Shannon set about raising funds for the Boom Foundation which is the only charity in Northern Ireland dedicated to supporting patients with sarcoma.

As thousands rolled into her online ‘justgiving’ page, thousands more were raised at a special ‘Shine for Shannon’ bingo night held a few weeks ago.

In a social media post, Shannon said she hoped at least one life could be saved by the fundraising.|

“Sorry it has taken me so long to give you all an update, unfortunately I ended up in hospital with an infection,” she said.

“When I first set up this page the initial target was to raise £2,500 and I didn’t even think I’d reach that. Between the Just Giving Page and the Shine for Shannon event we have raised just over £60,000.

“The generosity and kindness shown by each and every one of you has been overwhelming, I cannot thank you enough. The world truly is such a beautiful place.

“Between all of the donations and awareness that has been spread about the Boom Foundation and sarcoma in general, I think it’s safe to say we can save at least one person’s life and that alone makes my journey worthwhile.”

She added, “In the words of Maya Angelou, ‘I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel’. I for one will never forget how each of you have made me feel.”
The Shine for Shannon bingo night was originally intended to be held at Gervin’s bar in the town but such was the demand for tickets that the venue has been switched to Coalisland Parochial Hall.