Crawley man sheds pounds to raise pennies for cancer charity

A DETERMINED and loving nephew is pledging to shift the pounds in memory of his "best friend, brother and second dad".

Alan Webb-Moore, from Tollgate Hill, will be shedding pounds to raise pennies as he attempts to lose two stone in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support.

The 36-year-old said: "This is a charity which is very close to my heart.

"My uncle, David Reeves-Beesley, died of cancer when he was just 55. We were really close, he was my best friend, my brother and my second dad all rolled into one.

"My aunt and uncle didn't have any children so we were always really close."

Alan, who lives in Wilberforce Close with his civil partner Darren, wants to lose just over two stone, going from around 15-and-a-half to 13 stone, in three months.

He said: "I think it has to be a realistic target. I want to get healthy and I thought this would be a good way of doing it while raising money at the same time.

"My uncle died too young, and all along the way the Macmillan staff and nurses were just fantastic. It is coming up to the five year anniversary since he died.

"We had our civil partnership two years ago, and if he was alive, my uncle would have been my best man.

"I've got so many happy memories, he treated me like a son.

"Sometimes you can't speak to your parents about things and he would never judge or ridicule my problems, he would just listen and offer advice.

"He wasn't a loud man, one way I could describe him was that he was a tower of strength.

"From the minute he was diagnosed he had hope. He was a fighter and really did fight to the end.

Speaking about the inspiration for his slimming attempt, Alan added: "I miss him very much but if me doing this can help other families who are going through what we did - it will all be worth it."

To sponsor Alan visit www.Justgiving.com/Alan-Webb-Moore