A CLYDEBANK schoolgirl has raised more than £1,600 for charity in memory of her auntie who spent a month receiving treatment at the Beatson.

Fifteen-year-old Ashleigh Ruthven organised the disco herself to give something back to the cancer centre that “done as much as they could” for her auntie Lesley Ferguson.

Lesley, mum to eight-year-old Callum and 10-year-old Chloe, was only 46 when she passed away in 2017.

The cancer was only detected a month before she passed away, and the specific type wasn’t identified as it was all over her body by this point.

Ashleigh said: “I had only really known people who had suffered from cancer but had never seen anyone suffering. My aunt’s cancer was really hard hitting.

“Seeing her totally change and the affect it had on my family really affected me and is something I’ll never forget.

“The thought of a disease being able to take someone so quickly and how it can destroy so many people’s lives with a click of a finger really did make me think.

“However, seeing the work of the nurses at the Beatson, when they were not only doing as much as they could to save my Auntie Lesley but also providing amazing support for her friends and family during such a devastating time, was amazing.

“I know for a fact that everyone is affected by cancer in some way or another so it made me decide to start trying to do what I can to help. To even make a little difference would mean the world to me.”

Read more: Beatson opens new support for families facing cancer

The event held last month in the Singer Bowling Club means that more than £1,673 has been raised so far but Ashleigh is determined to reach the £2,000 mark before she hands the money over to the cancer charity at the end of March.

Ashleigh’s mum Carole and dad Graham said they couldn’t be prouder of their daughter.

Carole said: “We are major proud of Ashleigh. She booked the hall, organised what was happening and sold all the tickets. She got loads of companies donating prizes for a raffle.

“We got the hall for free, the DJ cut his price in half, and the lady decorating the hall done it for free. Everyone done their bit to help out.

“All too often we hear about what teenagers don’t do but Ashleigh thought about doing all this herself. She was asking to do it about it a year ago, but it was still too raw at the time.

“We thought Lesley was going to get better but had to go collect Ashleigh from school one day and tell her the bad news. She was only young, she had just turned 13 and they were very close. It was a big shock.”

A JustGiving page has been set up to help reach the £2,000 target. To donate visit: justgiving.com/fundraising/Ashleigh-Ruthven.