Teen disco sees St John’s Wood teenager raise £3,500 for bowel cancer charity

by Milena Veselinovic Tuesday, January 22, 2013
6:45 AM

A student has raised nearly £3,500 for charity by organising a disco night for teenagers.

Tanya Fattal, who lives in Hamilton Terrace, St John’s Wood, gave 200 13-year-olds a night to remember with a snowflake-themed ball at the D Den Legacy club in Finchley Road, Swiss Cottage, as part of a pledge to raise £20,000 for the charity Bowel & Cancer Research.

The 21-year-old former Northbridge House school pupil, who organised the event with sister Maya, 15, and friends Gaby Khalastchy, 22, and Ria Semp, also 22, chose the charity because she has suffered from digestive problems since the age of 14.

The party was completed with professional DJ Thomas Greenaway, and performer Striz Kurn, as well as alcohol-free “mocktails”, bouncers, a photo-booth and a raffle with prizes including a Lulu Guinness bag and Topshop vouchers personally delivered on the night by the clothes chain heiress Chloe Green.

Tanya, who is studying nutrition at Oxford Brookes University, was delighted with the evening’s outcome.

She said: “Striz Kurn was brilliant, and Lush staff [from the beauty store] turned up to make bath bombs with the teens. Everyone had an amazing time – even my friends did not want it to end!”

The four girls promoted the event through Facebook, and by leafleting and contacting schools.

Tanya and her friends have now reached £8,000 towards their target, as they previously organised a “neon party” for pupils in Year 7 which raised more than £4,000.

Deborah Gilbert, chief executive of Bowel & Cancer Research, expressed her gratitude for the girls’ effort and said: “Our charity’s vision is to make sure that people like Tanya do not have to live with chronic problems, and this kind of support from fundraisers is absolutely vital.”

Tanya said: “I have been in and out of hospital for years with a lot of crazy symptoms. I cannot eat properly and have to take lots of medicine.”