A group of young people from Burscough are putting on a Family Music Festival that will not only launch their organisation, but will also raise awareness of and improve the life chances for people suffering from blood cancer.

The event - already attracting a strong line up of local bands and performers - runs from 2 pm till late on Saturday 30th September at Burscough Cricket Club.

There will be stalls, sideshows and bouncy castles and lots for all the family as well as a 25m marquee with stage and dance floor.

New group, Youth of Burscough who are organising the event chose DKMS as the good cause to support when they heard Jem’s Story and how a simple cheek swab can identify a matching donor and save a life.

DKMS aims to provide a matching donor for every blood cancer patient in need of a blood stem cell donation. Every 20 minutes, someone in the UK is diagnosed with a blood cancer and some 2,000 people are looking for a potentially lifesaving
blood stem cell donor each year.

Since DKMS launched in the UK in 2013, they have registered more than 300,000 people as potential blood stem cell donors; some of these amazing people have gone on to donate blood stem cells, giving more than 330 second chances of life to blood cancer patients.

Throughout the festival, DKMS volunteers will be on hand to take cheek swabs and register life-saving doners. The event also hopes to raise much needed funds for this important charity.

The little boy who inspired this great day out has been saved by a donor from Germany when none could be found in the UK. Jem’s family now want to help others in a similar situation by raising awareness and to find donors who will save lives.

Lucy, Jem’s mum told QLocal: "Jem is now 14 months old but sadly in the first year of his life, he's spent more time in hospital than he has at home. That's because when he was just 4 months old, Jem became ill and was diagnosed with a rare form of childhood leukaemia called Juvenile MyeloMonocytic Leukaemia (JMML) by the Haematology team at Alder Hey Children's Hospital."

The only curative treatment for this type of Leukaemia is a Stem Cell Transplant -unfortunately his siblings weren't a tissue match, so a worldwide search for a match was undertaken and a donor was found from Germany. Jem commenced his transplant at Manchester Royal Children's Hospital in February.

Jem's been fortunate that he found a match and therefore has been able to undertake this amazing treatment - but not everyone is so lucky. So in an effort to support those who continue to search for a cure and support individuals who need a Stem Cell Transplant or Bone Marrow Transplant, Jem's family & friends
are doing all that they can to raise awareness and much needed donors and funds for DKMS.

Added Cllr. Brian Bailey, on behalf of the Parish Council: “We are incredibly impressed by the enthusiasm and enterprise of our young people who have worked tirelessly to make this event a great success. We would like to acknowledge too the enormous generosity of our local businesses including Mahoods (Marquees), Burscough Car Boot Fair, Smiths Van Hire, Martlands Skips and the team at Tesco for volunteering."

The Charity Music and family festival starts at 2pm on Saturday 2017 with music and fun for all the family with just £1 entrance fee.

"This is a great cause and a great day for all the family," said Cllr. Bailey.