Glitterball bash for a deserving cause

Charity night to raise awareness of pancreatic cancer

A charity ball in aid of a good cause will be held in Burnside later this month.

Paul McCaroll, who stays in Rutherglen, has organised the bash at the Burnside Hotel to raise funds for one of his best friends, whose husband has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Paul told the Reformer: “I’ve been friends with Susan Allan for 25 years.

“Her husband wasn’t well but nobody thought it was anything serious, until they found out it was pancreatic cancer.

“Only palliative care was offered by the NHS giving him less than a year left to live.

“Through a friend we have learned of a groundbreaking cancer clinic in Germany and although small numbers they have had cases of stage four cancers going into full remission.

“There’s 10 of us in our team at work, so up and down the country we’ve done different events, like one girl getting her hair cut off, another jumped out of a plane and a guy took part in a sponsored boxing match.

“So I thought I’d arrange a charity glitterball.

“The Burnside Hotel has been amazing - they’ve been unbelievably helpful, donated all these items and decorated everything for free.

“They’ve asked for nothing in return, so I have to say thanks to Ellen and Julie Anne there, who have been fantastic to deal with.”

Paul, who works at a travel company, has booked singing duo Robert and May Miller to headline the entertainment on the night.

He added: “Robert and May have cancelled a gig so they could do this one because it’s such an important cause.

“We’ve had support from local businesses and we’ve got so many prizes to give away on the night, like a weekend in Dubai.”

While the main aim of the night is to raise funds for Susan, Paul is also hopeful the night will raise awareness about pancreatic cancer as a whole.

“There is very rarely a happy ending there and people can ignore the symptoms because they don’t realise what they are.”

The night will feature a red carpet champagne reception, followed by a four course meal with professional entertainment from Robert and May Miller and then a late night disco.

Cambuslang woman Fiona Brown, who works with Pancreatic Cancer Scotland, will be speaking at the event on September 16.The cost per ticket is £35 per person and the event will run from 7pm to 1am.

People can ignore the symptoms because they don’t realise what they are