Friends and neighbours are nursing sore feet after walking 36 miles to raise enough money to send a Tipton man diagnosed with cancer on holiday with his family.
Mark Fitzpatrick, aged 40, has lived with a brain tumour for many years but recently suffered a relapse.
His children – Kirsty-Lea, aged 14, Liam, aged 12 and Jake, seven – wanted to cheer him up with a holiday so a family friend Angela Whittingham organised a fund-raising appeal.
The children asked their schoolfriends from Willingsworth High and Alexandra High to take part in Saturday’s sponsored walk.
Some 23 people , mainly youngsters, completed the trek to Stourport in 10 hours and 15 minutes – including young Jake.
The community has already collected £400 through a fund-raiser two weeks ago and don’t plan to end their efforts just yet. Angela said the original plan had been to send the family to America but the destination was switched to south Devon after Mark was advised not to fly.
Joanne, Mark’s 33-year-old wife, who also completed the walk, said: “The response was marvellous, especially from all the children. Everyone turned up, it was heart-warming.
“Mark can’t believe that the community would do this for him, it’s put such a smile on his face. You can’t beat the people of Tipton.”
Family and friends in cars provided refeshments and words of encouragement along the way. The walkers eventually arrived in Stourport at 9pm.
Mark married Joanne last August after proposing during a spell in intensive care. They will take their holiday next month just before Mark undergoes a hip replacement operation.
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