Kamal’s total passes £65,000

Following a diagnosis of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia, Valli Optometrist Kamal Aftab bravely pledged to raise £50,000 for the national blood cancer charity, Bloodwise.

Kamal set up a JustGiving page called Kamal’s Hospital Marathon, and aimed to raise much needed funds for the then Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research (LLR), now known as Bloodwise. Sadly Kamal lost his fight with cancer in August last year following a battle of little over 2 months having raised over £13,000.

To help keep Kamal’s memory alive following his death and to help raise funds towards the set target, we at Valli Opticians pulled on our walking boots and with help of family, friends and patients organised and took part in the Valli Rally, a family friendly sponsored walk across the hills and valleys of Huddersfield.

Donations have been coming through over the last few months from severals groups and individuals and amazingly on what would have been Kamals 34th birthday, his Justgiving page received a huge off-line donation taking his total to £65,705 – more than £15,000 above the original target.

Moin Valli, managing director of Valli Group, Kamal’s employer, and friend said: “We were keeping an eye on Kamal’s total for several weeks now and watching it trickle towards the £50k target, and then miraculously this huge donation came in, right on his birthday, which smashed the target.  Wherever he is, I’m sure he is very proud of this achievement.  For me this is just part of the legacy he has left behind, etched in my mind, about the amazing person he was and continues to be”.

For more on this story, please click on this link: http://www.examiner.co.uk/news/west-yorkshire-news/late-huddersfield-community-worker-kamal-10878719