Running bin man Deano raises thousands of pounds in memory of mam and to support hospital that cared for her
Devoted son Deano has taken on a fundraising challenge on May 28 every year since he lost his mother Edna
Running binman Deano Franciosy has raised over £2,000 for Sunderland Royal, the hospital that cared for his mother before she died, as he took on his latest challenge with his wheelie bin strapped to his back.
In his latest challenge, Deano, who works as a refuse collector for Sunderland City Council, scaled the 199 steps to Whitby Abbey 32 times in one hour, meaning he climbed and descended a mammoth total of 12,736 steps.
Devoted son Deano has taken on a fundraising challenge on May 28 every year since he lost his mother Edna who passed away in 2001 at the age of 61 due to a heart attack.
Deano, 57, who lives in Pennywell, said: “When she was in hospital at Sunderland Royal, I kissed her forehead and promised every year I would take on a challenge to raise money in her memory and to support the Integrated Critical Care Unit (ICCU). They were brilliant in the way they looked after my mam and I just want to give something back and to say thank you for how they supported my mam and our family.”
Deano runs his challenges with a photograph of his mam both on his t-shirt and inside his bin.
He added: “The last 15 minutes were really tough and I could feel the back of my legs. When it got tough, I just kept thinking of my mam and why I was doing this. Quite a lot of people had also gathered on the steps and their support also kept me going.”
As well as raising money through the South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust charity fundraising page, Deano’s friends and family, including his fiancé Elsa and stepdaughter Ellie, collected £144 additional donation from spectators.
Ahead of the challenge, staff at Lidl in Plains Farm, including Don Clarke, Charlotte Barker, Chelsea Barker, and Jessica Thomson, collected money in buckets at the store.
This week, Deano returned to the ICCU at Sunderland Royal Hospital to handover a cheque for an impressive £2,240.
He said: “The staff were over the moon with the donation and said I would have made my mam proud. This is a cause which is really close to my heart and hopefully this can help to get any equipment or machines they might need.
“Staff at the ICCU were brilliant with my mam until the day she died and I intend to keep fundraising for them until the day I die.”
Deano said he wanted to thank everyone who had supported his fundraiser. You can continue to donate to his cause via the Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust charity fundraising page.