A huge well done to the family and friends of Conlan Smith who took on the Peter Rabbit: Tales on the Tyne trail last weekend, raising a fantastic sum for St Oswald’s Hospice.
Conlan, who died aged 14 in 2023, was a big fan of previous art trails, and along with his carer Nick, would go out to collect the sculptures.
The group taking on the trail included Conlan’s parents, Lee and Sev, his brothers, Baden and Caleb, his cousin, Ella, and his carer Nick, and Nick’s wife Judy.
With their apps and maps ready, the group hopped on the trail in Gosforth.
Splitting into 3 teams, taking the Metro, the bus and Conlan’s bike, they raced against one-another to visit all 96 sculptures and locations across Newcastle and North Tyneside.
Lee said, “Nick and I took Conlan’s bike, which was not the quickest by any stretch! However, I’m pleased to say that despite its speed, we completed the challenge in 9 hours.
Team Metro completed the challenge in 2 days and team bus are still to finish. We all had a brilliant time taking part and enjoyed seeing all of the sculptures, they’re all really well done.”
The group were keen to spot ‘A Sunny Afternoon’, the small sculpture designed by Sir Charles Parson school, where Conlan was a student and where Nick works.
The finish line for Lee and Nick was at Haymarket, Newcastle. This spot holds many fond memories for the group, as Conlan would often visit there to watch the buses coming in and out of the depot.
Lee added, “We chose to raise money for St Oswald’s as we know how important it is to the people of the North East. I’m involved with the local Blood Bikes and having visited the hospice in this capacity, it stood out to me. It’s somewhere that means a lot to Nick, too.
Thank you to everyone who donated and cheered us on, we’re very grateful”
Are you inspired to Take on the Trail?
Pledge to become a trail champion by raising over £100 and collecting all the sculptures on our Peter Rabbit: Tales on the Tyne art trail. Visit our Trail Champion page for everything you need to know.
