An Ayrshire mum has told how her dying son’s journal inspired floods of donations to a cancer charity.
Dawn Kennedy says her son Jay Kennedy’s final words for being the driving force behind a £91,206 fundraiser.
Jay lost his 18-month long battle against brain cancer in October 2021. He was just 20.
We told how the incredible amount was raised through the ‘Jay Walk’ which saw 300 supporters trek the entire length of the River Ayr.
The funds will go towards Ayrshire Cancer Support’s new centre in Ayr, with the charity netting the largest total yet towards the project.
Throughout the campaign Dawn took it upon herself to create meaningful social media posts which were based around Jay’s journal which was written by Jay on his phone for his family to read.
Dawn told Ayrshire Live: “It’s funny how things happen. Creating the page and using social media has been healing for me. The power of social media has definitely shone through.
“I’ve been able to share his Jay’s story and tell people about him.
“I think people really grabbed on to his story. What he wrote in his journal is just so powerful.
“I wanted to share that to help people and to support young people’s mental health with his words.”
Powerful extracts in Jay’s own words were shared on a dedicated Facebook page which gained more than 2,000 followers.
Touching contributions from family and friends were added to the page, photos and personal memories were shared including a heart warming video of Jay taking on his own walk when he fought the illness.
Looking back on the Jay Walk Dawn can’t quite believe how they managed to achieve such a feat, after the idea started off from District Nurse Gail Nisbet vowing to do a walk in honour of Jay.
She said: “Gail only knew Jay for two and a half weeks. She said to Jay she would do a walk for him it was just a fleeting throw away thing. She kept her promise.
“We were all scared the beginning, we were still so full of grief and we never thought we’d end up where we have.
“It just grew arms, legs and wings. It was a relief to get to £15,000, then it just kept going and going.
"I think Jay’s story was key to that. I just kept sharing things. I put a lot of thought into every post. It was about getting Jay’s message out there.”
Sandra McCall, Ayrshire Cancer Support CEO said, “Our huge and heartfelt thanks to the family and friends of Jay for organising The Jay Walk in his honour and bringing so many people in the community alongside them to make this a fantastic memory walk and fundraising event.
"On behalf of children, young people and adults affected by cancer in Ayrshire, this incredible total will make a huge difference to their lives.
"Jay has become a very special founding sponsor of our new support centre in Ayr and this is a wonderful legacy for a remarkable young man which so many people will benefit greatly from.”
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