A heartbroken mother has said a huge thank you to members of the community who rallied round to celebrate the lives of three teenagers killed in a devastating car crash.
More than £35,000 has been raised for charity with a rugby match and memorial day at Wensleydale Rugby Club in Leyburn.
Aaron Bell, 18, from Jervaulx, Louis Banks, 17, and Tommy Shevels, 18, both from Healey, died when the car they were travelling in crashed near Bedale last summer.
Aaron’s mum Nicola Bell-Percy organised the event with Aaron’s friends from Bishop Burton College, near York, and Wensleydale Rugby Club, where he had played. About 1,000 people turned out on Saturday, more than £15,500 was raised through a charity auction and £9,740 through raffle tickets. They are still counting, but know the total will be in excess of £35,000 for the charities Young Minds, Brake, Yorkshire Air Ambulance and Just B.
Nicola said: “It has been beyond all expectations. Last August Aaron’s friends wanted to have a memorial rugby match with a barbecue and it just grew from there. When we said what we were doing the support we have been given has been overwhelming. I just want to say a huge thank you to everybody, it has meant a lot.
“We had over 80 sponsors, people who donated and businesses, we had 110 raffle prizes. It went from a small memorial for Aaron and his friends to a very big event, with a band on the evening.
“Louis’s older brother Harry played on Saturday, my husband Andrew Bell-Percy, 54, dug out his boots and played. It was a really good match, such great spirit and a trophy organised by Bishop Burton was presented in memory of the three friends.
“Wensleydale RUFC did a great job in hosting the event, and money has been raised through hoodies we had made.”
Aaron and Louis had both played for Wensleydale since they were youngsters, and Aaron went to Bishop Burton College, where he represented the academy team.
“The whole point was to celebrate the lives of the three friends, and we raised thousands for the four charities,” said Nicola. “It is about remembering them and talking about them, and it was a particularly special day for Aaron’s younger brother Luke.”
She added: “The past year has been so difficult and this has given us a purpose to get out of bed on a morning, it has given me a bit of a lift, it gives you time to find a little bit of goodness in the world. It is a really difficult road to walk for a family and that is not really going to change.
“I have had so many people alongside helping to organise. I just want to say thank you to everybody, the whole community contributed in making it a really special day, it is hard to find the words to say what it means.
“I think all three boys would have been proud, if they had been with us they would have absolutely loved the day. We organised an 18th birthday party for Aaron in our barn. Just a small affair, and he said then ‘thanks mum you have gone above and beyond as usual’.
“I think he would be chuckling up there and saying the same thing now, I think all three boys would be saying it. Hopefully we have made them proud.
“And for their friends I think they appreciated it as well, it was a way to connect and remember the boys.”
The youngsters were passengers in an Alfa Romeo car involved in a crash on the B6268 Bedale to Masham road on July 29 last year. The driver was treated in hospital for serious injuries.
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