Personal trainer Harry Zambon died in February, almost four years after suffering two brain haemorrhages and a stroke before being diagnosed with an aggressive and rare form of cancer.
After his diagnosis he regularly visited schools and businesses to give motivational speeches and also worked to raise £12,000 for the Jersey Brain Tumour Charity.
Now his mother, Sharon Shepherd, is hoping to raise £10,000 to create a memorial garden at Jersey
THE family of a ‘kind-hearted’ Islander who died earlier this year aged 25 have begun fundraising in his memory in the hope of creating a memorial garden at his former school.
Personal trainer Harry Zambon died in February, almost four years after suffering two brain haemorrhages and a stroke before being diagnosed with an aggressive and rare form of cancer.
After his diagnosis he regularly visited schools and businesses to give motivational speeches and also worked to raise £12,000 for the Jersey Brain Tumour Charity.
Now his mother, Sharon Shepherd, is hoping to raise £10,000 to create a memorial garden at Jersey College for Girls, where he studied while attending Victoria College. His sister Lara also attended JCG and is involved with the memorial project, which aims to provide a place for quiet reflection.
‘We hear so much about mental health and how the environment is so important and although there are terraces at JCG there is not a place where the students can go which is especially green and welcoming,’ said Mrs Shepherd.
‘A site has been identified and Carl Howarth [JCG principal] and staff have been very supportive.’
She added: ‘After Harry died his dad and I both received a lot of letters from different people whose lives Harry had touched in some way. Quite a few of them – and I think Tom would say the same – were things we didn’t know about, but Harry helped them in some way. He just felt it was so important to be kind and he had such high hopes for all of us, not just the family, but anybody he met – he just wanted the best for them.
‘I just wanted to do something positive, even though this is a very difficult time for us as a family. There are going to be a lot of firsts for us – the first birthday without him at the end of this month, his sister’s first birthday without
him and the first Christmas.’
Mrs Shepherd is a keen gardener and thanks to offers of help from parents at JCG she is developing a plan for the garden and, if the money can be raised, hopes to plant it within the next few months so it can be ready for summer.
Writing on the JustGiving fundraising page, she added: ‘Harry recognised that whilst life is extremely busy and filled with different priorities, it is so important to allow time for reflective thinking. Harry also felt that if life was balanced, then he could set achievable and realistic goals for himself.
‘Having a peaceful outdoor space on the campus will allow students an appropriate and suitable place to take some time out for thinking and reflection away from the busy college environment.’
Since its launch over the weekend, more than £1,300 has been donated to the cause by 42 supporters. To donate visit justgiving.com and search for Sharon Shepherd.
