Bridge name call to honour young Bradley
ONLINE PETITION BACKS WEAR CROSSING IDEA
Make it The Bradley Lowery Bridge!
A petition has been launched urging city leaders to honour the five-yearold, who has united people across the country as they back his fight against a rare form of cancer.
Sarah Wilkinson was moved to set up the online campaign after hearing the story of how Bradley had been diagnosed with neuroblastoma.
The Blackhall youngster and his family have been told his condition is terminal, with his parents Gemma and Carl ensuring he has as many good memories and experiences as he can.
They are already planning a trip to Disneyland and have already been to the Grand National and seen him become a mascot for England, walking out onto the pitch at Wembley Stadium with his “best pal” and Sunderland player Jermain Defoe.
Sarah has launched the petition through Sunderland City Council’s site and suggeststhebridgeisopened by Bradley and Defoe once the £117.6million crossing is complete next spring.
The43-year-oldcriminology and law university student said: “Bradley has done what no one else has done, he’s united north and south Sunderland and the bridge is going to do exactly the same.
“The little love has got a hard fight on his hands, but he still smiles through it and he’s got a huge grin on his face every time he kicks a ball.
“I know there are other children out there who are poorly too, but look at what his parents have done, they’vegothisstoryoutthere to help.”
The petition states: “Bradley Lowery, as many of you know, suffers from a very rare form of cancer.
“He has done one thing that nobody else has ever done he’s not only united both the north and south of Sunderland but the whole of this country as one.
“It would give us all the greatest of pleasure to see the bridge at Pallion that is beingbuiltthatwillalsounite the north and south of Sunderland The Bradley Lowery Bridge, there is only one man who has the honour of openingsaidbridgewithBradley and that is the footballer Jermain Defoe who proudly plays for Sunderland.
“He has taken Bradley under his wing the bond between the two is just magic to see.”
The appeal to the council has a threshold of 1,500 to meet. The council has previously looked to the city to help decide its name, but none has yet been given to the project.
The petition can be found at http://sunderlandconsult.limehouse.co.uk/ portal/petitions/the_bradley_lowery_bridge.