Crucible Pool Players raise £4k for Jake & Molly

Local children Jake and Molly can now look forward to their new specialized bikes thanks to the generous support received from Crucible members.

6 year old Jake was born prematurely and suffers with cerebral palsy which has left him wheelchair bound.  A lovable lad that you just can’t help feeling proud to know.

3 year old Molly has Microcephaly, Hypotonia and Global Developmental Delay. Molly can not walk or talk but from her interactions with everyone at the 24hr pool marathon, she has touched the hearts of many.

Both Jake and Molly require special bikes/trikes to help build the muscle tone in their legs which will one day mean they will be able to walk unaided.  And with the wonderful fundraising efforts of Crucible regulars, Mark Alexander, Peter Thomas, Dominic Yates, David Withers and Ali Daley, both children will soon have the chance to do what we all take for granted.

Over the weekend of 23-24 February, Mark, Peter, Dominic, David and Ali played 24 hours of non-stop pool.  Many members and non-members alike booked an hours slot throughout the event for a nominal fee of £5 per hour, though many donated much more both to play and for the raffle that was organised on the Sunday evening.  Some people even donated money simply because these two wonderful children touched their hearts.

Both Jake and Molly even had their own hour at the table!

At the end of the 24hrs, a quick count of all the donations so far showed that the boys had exceeded their expectations and had already raised in excess of £3800, by the following lunch time – this had grown to over £4ooo with more money to come in.  Suffice to say that they were shocked and emotional to have achieved such a sum.  And the emotions were shared by many customers present when the amount raised over the weekend were announced.  Tears were a plenty throughout the club, not least from Helen and Kellie, Jake’s and Molly’s mum’s, both of whom have expressed their gratitude to the boys, the Crucible and our members and customers.

Thanks are also due to the members of Rileys in Reading who attended the evening, bringing a donation of £570 which they raised through their own pool competition.

The Crucible is proud to have been able to be a part of such a wonderful event and we look forward to welcoming both Jake and Molly back – hopefully soon & with their new gifts.

If you haven’t yet made a donation and would like to support Jake and Molly, donations are still being accepted via their individual fundraising pages:

http://www.gofundme.com/mollytrikefund

http://www.gofundme.com/1w24hg

And as an additional event to raise further money for the children, WBPPL is holding its Charity Easter Pool Knockout here at the Crucible on 28 March.

More details of this event are available at http://www.facebook.com/events/338571336247521/ and http://www.cruciblesports.co.uk/events/charity-pool-knockout/