Reepham girl raises £8k selling plants in memory of grandad

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp8zyv2k536o

Version 1 of 2.

Lucy said she received visits and donations from people across Norfolk

A girl has raised more than £8,000 for charity by selling plants on her driveway in memory of her grandad.

Lucy, from Reepham in Norfolk, started raising money for The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity in 2024 after her grandad died from a rare type of cancer.

The nine-year-old started selling plants from a stall outside of her home last year and said she had raised about £8,136.

She said: "We get people usually coming from all sorts of places, from Gorleston, Aylsham and Reepham."

Lucy lost her grandfather in 2024 after he was diagnosed with cancer six years earlier

People had helped bring her idea alive by donating plants, pots, compost, and seeds.

Lucy's grandad, Derek, received treatment at The Royal Marsden Hospital in London, but died six years after he was diagnosed.

The charity helps to provide care for patients and families affected by the disease and to develop life-saving treatments.

The family said the hospital gave them the "gift of time", and Lucy wanted to give back by raising money for the charity so it could do the same for others.

She said: "I am doing it in memory of my grandad... I love running the stall."

"We do have to restock quite a bit as a lot of stuff goes quite quickly," she added.

The stall was open 24/7 and restocked on a daily basis

She has sold lots of different plants to customers, including pansies, impatiens, and lobelias.

Lucy's mum, Claire, added: "We are incredibly proud of her. She is only nine."

Talking about her father, she said: "They gave him another six years of life, which without them we would not have had.

"They gave us the gift of time."

The stall was open for people to visit at any time, with Lucy sorting her stock out every day to ensure she had enough plants.

Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.