Thousands fundraised in memory of tragic student

MORE than £5,500 has been raised in memory of a student who died from a rare condition shortly after fulfilling her dream of becoming a town councillor.

Just days after being taken ill, Emily Price, 22, died from a rare illness on May 12 in Aberystwyth, where she attended university.

Ms Price’s family decided to create a crowdfunding page, and plan to spend the money in the town that she fell in love with.

Mum Natasha, 45, said: “It’s incredible really. We initially started the fund for £500, that was the original target.

“But then my husband had a call from his company and they said you better increase the limit soon because we’re about to donate £1,000. And it just went from there really.”

The final amount will help fund underprivileged students at the university and a bench in memory of Ms Price.

The JustGiving page reads: “Emily loved studying at the university and would have gone on to do her masters degree in September.

“Emily wanted to make a difference in the world and with your help we can continue her legacy.”

Ms Price had recently been elected to Aberystwyth town council as a Liberal Democrat and had completed her dissertation on mathematics and physics, when she died suddenly from a condition which affects only around 20-30 people in every million.

Natasha said: “When we first set the fund up we didn’t know exactly what we wanted to do with it.

“But now we want to set up an endowment for one student at Aberystwyth University each year, for a maths or physics student.”

Ms Price’s family also plan to dedicate a bench in her honour in Aberystwyth, a place that her mum said was “her home”.

Donations to the JustGiving page close on June 16 and can be made at www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/ Emily-Price-2017