Mum of Stephen Sutton reunites with namesake elephant after 10 years
It's been a decade since Stephen's dream to hug an elephant came true
Last updated 22nd May 2024
The mother of Stephen Sutton has reunited with Sutton the elephant, who was named after the inspirational teenager.
Stephen died with colorectal cancer on the 12th May 2014 at the age of 19, in Burntwood in Staffordshire.
During his battle with cancer, he raised £3 million for the Teenage Cancer Trust, a total which has doubled to £6 million since his death.
His fight captured the hearts of the nation when he drew up a bucket list of things he would like to achieve before he died, including hugging an animal bigger than himself.
West Midlands Safari Park reached out to the Suttons and his dream came true when he got to hug Five the elephant.
"We didn't realise at the time, Five was actually pregnant," said Jane, his mother.
Five's baby elephant was named Sutton, in Stephen's memory.
Ten years later, Jane met Sutton the elephant at Bristol's Noah's Ark Zoo Farm to mark the anniversary of his death.
"Oh, it's just absolutely fantastic to see Sutton again, because I met him a month after he was born so he was was small then," said Jane.
"So to come back today and get the chance to see him again and to feed him is an amazing experience."
The visit is part of a series of challenges Jane is undertaking in Stephen's memory around the country, in an effort to raise more money for the Teenage Cancer Trust.
Noah's Ark Zoo Farm set Jane the task of shovelling Sutton's poo - 28 shovels in 28 minutes.
"We had to scratch our heads and come up with a challenge," said Larry Bush, the zoo's director.
"Elephants produce a lot of poo and is a big part of our life managing the zoo so we thought let's do something with that.
"We knew Jane is up for a physical challenge so we thought let's get Jane doing what our keepers do and she did phenomenally well.
"She's a very fit person and she absolutely smashed it," Larry added.
Jane has been fundraising ever since her son's death, completing the London Marathon ten times and climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
"For me and my family it's really helped to continue Stephen's fundraising legacy," said Jane, "it was just so incredible what he managed to achieve."
"I always say Stephen left me here surrounded by that positivity that he had at the time - that was just so important to him and it helped him a lot throughout his cancer journey.
"So everything that we do in Stephen's memory is a big comfort to us."
"I think there's something really inspirational in someone like Stephen, who chooses to celebrate life," said Julie Worrall from the Teenage Cancer Trust.
"In the face of something so difficult for him, to take his experience and turn it into a force for good and his commitment to other young people in the same situation as him.
"He bought a real zest for life that stays with us all."
The poo Jane shovelled will be recycled and used as fertiliser in Noah's Ark's pumpkin patch, which Jane will help to harvest later this year.