Maldon giant vegetable grower raises £1000 for air ambulance with pumpkin display
By Charlotte Lillywhite
4th Nov 2021 | Local News
An award-winning giant vegetable grower from Maldon has raised £1000 for the air ambulance service, thanks to his impressive pumpkin display which was visited by hundreds of residents.
Ben White showcased his two giant pumpkins - Greta and Gloria - at his home on Goldhanger Road in Heybridge last week to raise money for the Essex and Herts Air Ambulance Trust and help fund its life-saving work across the county.
Visitors were able to see and take photos with the famous pumpkins including Greta, the biggest of the two, which won first place at the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Hyde Hall Giant Pumpkin Weigh Off this year.
Greta, which weighs 758lb, was also featured in the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in the Great Pavillion and met celebrities including Zoe Ball, Alexandra Burke, Alan Titchmarsh, Anthea Turner and even some of the Royals.
Ben said: "Thank you to the hundreds of people that came down and made a donation, and those who made donations online.
"Within a week, we've managed to raise £1000 - more than I ever expected."
The pumpkins were also lit up in the evening to create an extra special display for Halloween.
Ben is now looking forward to continuing his successful fundraising efforts.
He said: "With such a great response, I'll be looking at doing further fundraising in the future."
You can still make a donation online here.
To see more of Ben's work, visit his Instagram.
New maldon Jobs Section Launched!!
Vacancies updated hourly!!
Click here: maldon jobs
Share:
![Samuel pictured with the new beer in his small-batch brewery, and the D-Day Squadron ale [right]. (Photos: Datum Attitude)](https://storage.googleapis.com/nub-news-files/nub-news-file-storage/554268/conversions/06PdI1AhfggKwRMQUK9PPwOo4o84ZO-metaVW50aXRsZWQgZGVzaWduICg2OCkucG5n--category.jpg "Samuel pictured with the new beer in his small-batch brewery, and the D-Day Squadron ale [right]. (Photos: Datum Attitude)")