The brilliant way you can show your support for Sheffield's 'Man With The Pram' John Burkhill during lockdown

The coronavirus crisis has forced the inspirational fundraiser to park his pram for now and take a break from pounding the streets each day collecting donations for Macmillan Cancer Support.

But that hasn’t stopped people showing their support for the indefatigable 81-year-old from Handsworth, who was driven by the deaths of his wife June and daughter Karen to set himself the ambitious target of raising £1 million for the charity – a goal he is already more than three quarters of the way to achieving.

Sheffield’s ‘pram man' John Burkhill issues defiant message amid coronavirus pandemic

Thousands of pounds have poured into John’s JustGiving page since the lockdown began at the end of March and now his grandson, Danny Burkhill, has come up with a brilliant way for people to show he remains in their thoughts.

He is asking people to print out posters with a photo of John and the message ‘keep safe Sheffield legend Man With The Pram John Burkhill’ to display in their windows.

Danny hopes the posters will lift his grandfather’s spirits while he is out getting his daily exercise and will inspire more people to dig deep and help him hit the magic £1 million mark which he is more determined than ever to reach.

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“It was just a silly idea but the response has been fantastic and it really shows how much people in this city respect Grandad,” said Danny.

“He’ll love seeing the posters in people’s windows when he’s out walking and hopefully they’ll help him get him that little bit closer to £1 million.”

John said he missed being out on the streets collecting money and meeting his many friends but that he felt ‘as fit as ever’ and people had been brilliant at staying in touch by phone and checking he is OK.

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“My ambition’s always been to raise £1 million and that’s not changed, though it’s going to take a little longer now,” he added.

“I’ve had lots of messages from people ringing to ask if I’m OK and telling me they’ve been saving their coppers for when I’m back on the streets. I might need some welding on the pram because it could get a bit heavy but those coppers make all the difference.”

John also doffed his cap to fellow fundraiser Captain Tom Moore, who was made an honorary colonel on his 100th birthday after raising more than £32 million for the NHS by walking laps of his garden.

“He’s done a marvellous job at 100 years old and it was great to see the whole country getting behind him,” he said.

“I hope I’m still going like that when I get to 100.”

To donate to John’s fundraising appeal for Macmillan Cancer Support, visit: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/madwalker.

To download a poster to print out and display, visit: www.facebook.com/danny.burkhill.