By Paul Crute

Last updated at 12:04, Monday, 25 February 2013

A marathon-running baker raised nearly £1,000 to help a charity set up by a Cockermouth woman following the death of her six-year-old son.

Saskia Patrick made over 600 cupcakes

Saskia Patrick held a 24-hour bakeathon over the weekend – and ran half a mile every hour – to raise money for the Booktastic charity.

The charity was set up by friend Fiona Grove, of Brandlingill, after her son Wilf died of a cancerous brain tumour.

It provides reading material for youngsters on the ward at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary where Wilf spent nine months.

Throughout the challenge, which began at 9am on Saturday, Saskia baked more than 600 cakes – and they sold out within an hour of them going on sale.

Saskia, 27, of Central Road, Dearham, who taught Wilf during the last months of his life, said: “It went really well and once I had sold out people started giving me donations.

“There was a constant stream of people and some of them I didn’t even know.

“I am really grateful to everyone who came and I never thought I would make this much money.”

Saskia, a teacher at Wigton Infant School, said she found it hard during the early hours of Sunday morning when there was no one around to help her.

She added: “The whole 24 hours wasn’t too bad but between 5am and 7am I was really struggling on my own.”

Following her son’s death Fiona and friends, who called themselves the Fells Angels, took part in the Bob Graham Round, which crosses 42 Lakeland peaks, and raised £30,000.

The money was donated to the North of England Children’s Cancer Research, Crawford House, a hostel for parents of child patients staying at Newcastle and the Great North Air Ambulance with the rest used to set up the charity.

She bought library trollies and books to donate to the RVI and has since given hundreds more to the hospital and has offered audio books by uploading them onto laptops and tablets.

Fiona, 43, said the books had helped bring families together and allowed parents to read stories to their children who had maybe not had the opportunity before.

Saskia thanked all the businesses who helped with baking ingredients including the Trout Hotel, Laid with Love, Armathwaite Hall, the Co-op, Multiple Sclerosis Society and Hoopers.

First published at 12:02, Monday, 25 February 2013
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk