A Painting by Suffolk Singer Ed Sheeran Raises £67,000 for Cancer Campaign in Suffolk
A painting by Suffolk singer Ed Sheeran has raised £67,000 for a cancer charity after a month-long raffle.
Sheeran, of Framlingham, donated the artwork, called Splash Planet, to Cancer Campaign in Suffolk (CCiS) for the prize draw, which launched on February 12.
The painting was won by Claire Faynor, who lives on the east coast of America, after her name was randomly drawn from a list of thousands of people from across the world that had paid £20 for a raffle ticket.
The money raised through the raffle means that CCiS, which works to raise cancer awareness and support local residents before, during and after cancer, can continue with projects that had been put on hold due to a lack of funds.
Karen Hare, chief executive of the charity, said: “We have been overwhelmed and delighted by the support we have been given, both here and abroad and it’s been absolutely fantastic to know that we have raised over £51,000 through ticket sales and donations.”
The amount raised has since increased to £67,000 for the Ipswich-based charity after two ‘very generous’ donations overnight.
Ms Hare added: “I’d like to thank everyone who has helped to make this possible, you have been incredible.
“We couldn’t have done any of this without the support of Ed and his team and the press, together with social media coverage, has been extraordinary.
“Over 28 days you’ve all contributed to ensuring we can continue to meet the needs of people in Suffolk and we look forward to your continued support.”
In a video to support CCiS’ fundraiser last month, Ed described his painting as “one of the big splashy ones” from the cover artwork for his single Afterglow.
He encouraged people to enter the raffle and said the money raised “goes to a really fantastic cause and it’s going to help a lot of people, so thank you very much”.