Sheffield girl leaves dad emotional after raising £25,000 for charity in tribute to Jude Mellon-Jameson

A Sheffield school girl has reached an unbelievable milestone after raising a total of £25,000 for charity in just two years.

Leah Walton, aged 11, first began raising money for Jude Mellon-Jameson after he was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer called high-risk neuroblastoma. 

Jude tragically passed away at age five in September - but Leah decided to continue raising money in his memory, this time for Sheffield Children’s Hospital’s charity, where Jude was cared for.

In just over five months, the Year 6 pupil has reached £10,000 for The Children’s Hospital Charity.

Speaking to The Star, Leah said it felt "good" to have raised so much money - though she confessed she couldn’t quite fathom how much the grand total of £25,000 was.

"It’s quite hard for me to figure it out because my dad tries to tell me [how much it is worth] in cars, but I’m not a big fan of cars so I don’t really get it," she said.

Leah’s football-mad family, who are proud supporters of Sheffield Wednesday, had previously met Jude’s dad and former Owls goalkeeper Arron Jameson at a game where he gave Leah’s brother a pair of signed gloves.

Craig and Charlotte, Leah’s parents, who live in High Green, have stayed in touch with Jude’s parents Arron and Lucy while Leah has continued her fundraising efforts.

Last year, The Star reported how Leah had reached her initial £10,000 milestone for Solving Kids’ Cancer after selling goods made with her sewing machine, such as scrunchies and key rings. She has since further developed her skills and started also making travel bags, glasses cases, and football emblems.

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Leah has also received help from the Lionesses, including Lucy Bronze and Ellie Roebuck, who met with her and gave her signed items to keep and auction off. Former Lioness Jill Scott also filmed herself praising Leah’s homemade scrunchies.

Dad Craig, aged 50, said: "She's such a kind, generous kid. She never stops, she’s absolutely crackers. 

"She does work hard. When I saw £10,000 on her Just Giving page, it welled me up. It’s a lovely feeling that our little girl did that."

Craig told how Leah had fearlessly introduced herself to The Reytons when they were holding a pop-up shop in Meadowhall recently. The Rotherham band then proceeded to donate a number of items for her to raffle off.

Leah will be hosting a family Easter day at The Club House in Chapeltown on March 31 to raise more money with over 200 children expected to attend.

Emma Maskrey, community fundraising officer at The Children's Hospital Charity, said: "We've been amazed by Leah's generosity and commitment to fundraising.

"To reach £10,000 in such a short amount of time is a huge accomplishment, we are all incredibly proud of Leah here at the Charity. We can’t thank her and her family enough for their continued support."

To take part in Leah’s raffles, please visit her Facebook group here: facebook.com/groups/286614201080863/

To donate to Leah’s Just Giving page, please visit: justgiving.com/page/leahwalton21012