Family and friends of a “bright and lovely” young footballer are gearing up for a 60-mile trek along the coast as he continues his cancer treatment.
Billy Davies, a charismatic 17-year-old Coplestonians FC player, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer in 2022.
Billy's family says he has challenged the disease head-on.
He has come through multiple rounds of chemotherapy, undergone two major surgical interventions as well as radiotherapy.
The 17-year-old is currently entering another cycle of treatment.
His mum, Abi Davies, said: “Billy is a bright, lovely boy who loves football.
“He is very outgoing and has lots of friends, who surprised us by organising the walk for him.”
For the family, it has meant taking a hit to their income and spending hours commuting to hospitals for treatment.
It has also been important to them to try to maintain some form of normality for Billy's brother Tommy, 15, which is why their friends decided to raise funds to help the family.
Mrs Davies added: “What we’ve been through has made us appreciate life even more.
“Billy is our lovely little boy, and we are grateful for every help we are getting during this difficult time.
“We feel overwhelmed with the support. This walk is such a lovely thing.”
On October 14, Billy’s dad, together with friends and players from the football team will walk more than 60 miles from Southwold to Ipswich to collect money that would support Billy and his loved ones.
Billy hopes to do the last stretch of the walk with them.
His friends set up a goal to raise £2,000 but the fundraising already exceeded their expectations, as they had already collected £7,800.
Support the fundraising here.
Mrs Davies added: “It’s absolutely crazy that people donated so much money. It’s just nice to think that they all care about Billy.”
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