The family of a man killed in an accident on a Lancashire motorway has thanked friends who raised cash for charity in his memory.
Helen Rooney, the daughter of Tony Crossthwaite who was killed on the M55 last month, said her family had been “overwhelmed” after his friends raised more than £1,000 for the North West Air Ambulance.
The group, led by friend Steve Clegg, raised £476 after holding a number of charity pool matches at The Eldon and The Cattle Market pubs in the Ashton area of Preston.
Friends, family and neighbours on the Fulwood estate where Mr Crossthwaite lived have also donated money to hand £1,046 to the charity in his memory.
Mrs Rooney said: “The family were overwhelmed by the generous response from the patrons of both public houses and were touched by the many expressions of sympathy from Tony’s friends.
“In particular the family would like to thank Graham and Sue (landlord and landlady at The Eldon) and Steve and Angie Wilson (landlord and landlady at The Cattle Market) for hosting the events and Steve, Andy (Fishwick) and Mick (Morley) for organising such a wonderful tribute to Tony.
“It has left the family feeling very comforted that our dad and husband had so many lovely friends with which he shared so many happy times.”
Mr Clegg said friends and family had wanted to donate the money to the air ambulance which came to Mr Crossthwaite’s aid after the incident.
The money raised by the pool tournament saw players pay to play and sold football cards.
He said: “Tony was a really popular guy in both pubs.
“Everyone knew him and we all wanted to do something in his memory to raise some money for the air ambulance.
“It is a great cause especially after what they did for Tony.”
A spokesman for the North West Air Ambulance said it relied on donations from the public for the £4.2m required to keep its two helicopters in the air.
He said: “The air ambulance provides a service to the people of the North West 365 days a year, but we could not do it without the generosity of the people of the North West.”
Last week, the North West Air Ambulance moved one of its two helicopters to a new base at the Royal Preston Hospital with its second helicopter based in Manchester.
Comments