A GIRL from York who was struck by meningitis as a toddler is stepping out to raise money for the York Hospital staff who helped save her life.

Edie Palmer, seven, from Acomb, featured in The Press in 2007 when she was rushed to hospital after breaking-out in the tell-tale rash just hours after going to bed with no signs of the killer disease.

At the time Edie’s mother Samantha said doctors told her if she’d been a few hours later it would have been “a different story”. Luckily Edie responded well to the antibiotics given to her by doctors and within three days she was able to join the other children on the rest of the ward.

Now Edie has decided she will raise money for the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) at York Hospital by setting out on a five-mile sponsored walk from her home in Green Lane and around the city walls, on May 26.

She said: “I just had the idea because I was thinking about when I was poorly. I have been training for it by doing lots of PE at school.”

Mum Samantha said Edie has already smashed her fundraising target of £200 and the money is still rolling in.

She said: “I have no idea where the idea came from. She just announced to me last Friday that she wanted to do a sponsored walk from our house, all the Bar Walls, and finish at York Minster.

“She understands the seriousness of what happened to her and says she wanted to do something to help.

“We started of with a £100 target and we reached that within about three hours. We have now raised £200 so I think we will go for £250.”

If you would like to help Edie by donating to her sponsored walk, go to her Just Giving page at www.justgiving.com/edies-york-walk