Elliot BallBBC News, West Midlands
BBCA Worcestershire mum whose daughter was killed in a crash has marked what would have been her 20th birthday by climbing a landmark for the 20th time.
Leanne Vaughan, said the climbs of Shropshire’s The Wrekin throughout 2025 helped her feel close to daughter Lily-May, who died in February 2023, aged 17.
Completing the charity challenge on 2 September, she said: “Grief is just love with nowhere to go, really. It was really sudden and unexpected so the walk has been a way of remembering Lily-May.”
Lily-May died when the car she was in came off the road near Shawbury. The driver Logan Addison, 20, was jailed for five and a half years in June.
Ms Vaughan added: “She loved the outdoors, she loved nature and she loved animals.
“I used to go on lots of walks with her in the past so it’s a way of feeling really close to her but also each walk that I’ve done different friends and family have joined me.
“It’s felt like a celebration of Lily-May’s life.”
The walks have also been aid of national charity RoadPeace which supports road crash victims, helping people who have been bereaved or seriously injured.
“I wanted to raise awareness for the fact that road collisions are the biggest killers for young people, and I didn’t realise this until I lost Lily-May in such a tragic way,” Ms Vaughan said.
“So at the same time as fundraising, it’s raising awareness to how dangerous it is to be a passenger in a newly qualified car.
“RoadPeace have been a lifeline to me, offering me emotional support but also support during the criminal investigation.
“I just wanted to give back to other families who have been involved with road accidents and also to help remember Lily-May.”
