TWO teenagers have raised more than £1,200 for a popular father-of-three from Chester who was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer.

On Sunday (April 18), Alice Mabbutt, 13, and Lilia Jones, 14, walked "a marathon in a day" in support of 42-year-old Karl Rae.

The girls completed a total of 28.35 miles in just under 10 hours – even enduring hail and snow at times – and Alice's dad Rich said their family and friends are proud of their achievement.

They were both keen to do something to raise funds after hearing about Karl's story.

We reported back in February that family and friends of Karl, who they describe as a "fun, loyal, down-to-earth man", had launched a fundraising campaign to support him.

So far more than £22,000 has been raised with lots of supporters carrying out various fundraising challenges and activities, which are being shared on the 'Karl, one day at a time' Facebook page.

The funds will help support the self-employed stonemason, his wife Gemma, who has health issues of her own, and their three children – Emmilia, 13, Dilen, 11, and Edith, six.

Chester and District Standard:

It is hoped that by reaching the £50,000 fundraising target there will be money available to cover alternative treatment costs as well as helping them make memories as a family.

Karl, who lives in Blacon, started suffering from dizzy spells and breathlessness in September last year before developing "crippling headaches" which left him struggling to get out of bed.

Two days before Christmas, he received the "devastating" MRI scan results which revealed that he had a cyst and mass on his brain.

On December 30, Karl underwent surgery to remove as much as possible of the growth, which sadly turned out to be a cancerous brain tumour.

It means he may only have 18 months to live.

However, Karl – who has undergone chemo and radiation therapy – is determined to fight it.