A BIG party celebrating the first birthday of a little boy who was diagnosed with cancer at six-weeks-old will raise funds for CLIC Sargent.

Lianne Crook and partner William Cohen from Bude are over the moon that their son, Oakley is in remission after being diagnosed with Neuroblastoma, a rare cancer in children, in January this year. To celebrate Oakley’s birthday, the family are planning a fun day to celebrate Oakley being one and to raise funds for the leading cancer charity for children.

The fun day will be at Budehaven Tennis Dome on November 19 from 11am. It sounds lots of fun with a rocket simulator bouncy castle, monster truck bouncy castle, face painting, cake sales, tombola and games. All are welcome!

Lianne said: “Oakley needed to be treated at Bristol Children’s Hospital, which is a two-hour drive away from home. The most helpful thing anyone did for us is to let us stay in the CLIC Sargent house, Sam’s House in Bristol, which is close by to the hospital. There, we could at times be a family with Oakley’s two-year-old sister Lacey and five-year-old brother Tyler. Having a place to stay, close by to the hospital was amazing. I spent the majority of my time in the hospital, but it was lovely to have a break from the stressful environment of the hospital and get a good night’s sleep in Sam’s House. The CLIC Sargent Nurses at the hospital were amazingly helpful too. That’s why we are keen to fundraise for the charity that helped us during this difficult time.”

The fun day from 11am to 4pm will be free to attend, with donations welcome.

Jordan Anderton, fundraising manager from CLIC Sargent, said: “Lianne and her partner have had a difficult year dealing with Oakley’s cancer diagnosis, having a young family of three children and for Lianne to stay away from home must have been very hard for the whole family. I am so impressed that she is finding the energy to organise this wonderful birthday party and a big thank you from us all at CLIC Sargent. I do hope the local community will be able to support this lovely event and we would like to wish Oakley a very happy first birthday!”