Charity ball raises over £100,000
Revellers raised over £100,000 at the annual Donna Mortimer Ballantyne Charity Trust ball last Saturday night.
The charity, chaired by Lady Susan Haughey, was set up in memory of Bothwell’s Donna, who died from skin cancer in 2011 aged just 39.
It aims to continue Donna’s efforts to raise awareness about skin cancer and the dangers of using sunbeds, whilst also supporting the work of Lanarkshire’s newest hospice – the Kilbryde Hospice in the grounds of Hairmyres Hospital in East Kilbride, where there is a special Donna Mortimer Ballantyne wing in her memory.
Now in its sixth year, the Donna Mortimer Ballantyne Charity Trust Ball has raised over £1million since she passed away.
And on Saturday evening, Glasgow and Lanarkshire’s top business people and sporting stars dined on a delicious menu before being treated to performances from Irish pop stars Brian Mcfadden of Westlife fame and Keith Duffy from Boyzone, who have teamed up as new act Boyzlife.
Britain’s Got Talent Star Edward Reid and The X Factor’s Caitlyn Van Beck also took to the stage at the event in the Double Tree by Hilton Hotel.
Lanarkshire entrepreneur James Mortimer, who recently sold the Hamilton Palace nightclub, and is the father of Donna, said: “We are so grateful to all the attendees and to those who have donated so generously both this year and throughout the past six years.
“Donna’s ball is a very special evening for our family and helps us celebrate her life.”
Donna, a mum of three, spent years warning people of the danger of sunbeds after being diagnosed with malignant melanoma in 2002 and being given just four weeks to live.
However, after travelling to the United States for specialist treatment at the Mayo Clinic, she was able to fight her cancer for a further nine years, giving her more time with her three children and family.
Sadly in June 2011 she lost her battle with skin cancer having had 19 tumours in her liver, stomach, leg and neck from the disease.
Throughout her illness, Donna raised over £1million for charity, giving up much of her very precious time to help others she considered less fortunate.