THE sister of a mother-to-be who died suddenly losing her unborn baby has said the overwhelming support from local people was testament to her popularity.

More than £8,500 has been raised in memory of 28-year-old Lucy Copland, who collapsed at her home last October.

Becci Woollard, who lives in Norton, said she was delighted that so much has been raised in such a short time for the charity, 4Louis, which supports bereaved parents and captures the lasting memories of their baby.

“Overall it is a testament to my sister and to public who wanted to do something to help when they heard what had happened to Lucy,” she said.

“It has also helped raise the profile of the charity and they will be able to do so much with this money – they are over the moon with the support.”

Lucy, who lived with her partner Jamie Wright, at their home in Malton, had been due to give birth to the couple’s first child, christened Seth Nicholas, at the end of November.

 

York Press:

Lucy Copland

 

Over Christmas, a charity football match raised £4,300 in memory of Lucy and Seth.

The Perm Cup, organised by Paul Holder and James Milson, was supported by Lucy’s family with a raffle and auction at the Royal Oak, in Malton, following the match.

Staff at Skipton Building Society in Malton, where Lucy previously worked, also launched the Ribbons For Lucy Campaign to collect donations from customers, as well as selling lapel ribbons in teal, her favourite colour.

Colleagues at the Skipton’s head office and around its network of branches also took part helping to raising more than £4,000.

Jill Fothergill, manager at Skipton’s Malton branch, said: “Customers at the branch were so devastated by the death of Lucy that they immediately wanted to donate money in her memory.

“The Ribbons For Lucy Campaign was set up so that her work colleagues could donate and we are pleased to be able to hand over more than £4,000 to the 4Louis Appeal.

“We know this money will be well used and is a suitable tribute to Lucy’s memory.”

Jill said Lucy was a popular face at the society’s Malton branch, where she worked for 10 years.

“Even though she had more recently been promoted to senior customer advisor at Scarborough, she had still been part of the Malton team,” she said.

“She started with us when she was 18 and was the youngest customer advisor I have ever taken on, but she had a wealth of common-sense and maturity beyond her years.”