Workers raise money for brave Dawson's holiday home

Dawson’s Home For Heroes gives children with life-threatening illnesses or diseases the chance to have a holiday with their families in a caravan at Butlin’s in Skegness.

The story of two-year-old Dawson, who died from a rare form of liver cancer, touched the hearts of workers at the Annesley-based Pendragon headquarters.

So they decided to launch a campaign of fundraising, which generated a total of £1,389.52. They put on a baking sale with a superhero theme, ran a tombola, rattled collection buckets and also dressed down for the day at work.

Jo Moxon, human resources director at Pendragon, said: “I am very proud of our head-office team for pulling together to put on a variety of fundraising events. We will continue to support this great cause.”

The holiday caravan was recently opened by Dawson’s mum and dad, Wendy and David, and it is already booked up for the summer, thanks to overwhelming support for the initiative.

Pendragon staff nominated Dawson’s Home For Heroes as their charity for April. The money raised will go towards ensuring the Skegness caravan is properly maintained.

Dawson’s plight attracted the support of well-wishers across the country. He was diagnosed in January last year with hepatoblastoma, a condition that affects only one in a million children.

UK-based chemotherapy treatment failed, so his parents launched a Dollar For Dawson appeal to take him to the USA for specialist treatment. More than £350,000 was raised, only for American doctors to decide that Dawson could not be saved. After he died last November, the Willcocks diverted the money to research, a charity and the retreat in Skegness.

Pendragon is one of the leading automotive retailers in the UK, with more than 200 franchise sites selling new and used vehicles and offering service and repair. It operates primarily under the brands of Stratstone and Evans Halshaw.