THE friends and family of a late Evesham mother who have been fundraising for a memorial in her honour are almost at their target.

Since a tragic road accident that killed Diana Burgess, of Hampton in October 16 in 2012, the group of friends have been working hard to raise £9,000 towards a hand carved seating area in Cropthorne in memory of the mother of three.

So far they have had great success with a calendar created last year, which saw some of her friends strip off for tasteful nude shots in locations across the Vale.

Now they are on the final stretch and fundraisers are doing their best to push towards the final amount with a murder mystery evening on Saturday, June 21.

Sally Mothersole, a friend of Mrs Burgess, said: "When I first suggested we did a fundraising event for this lovely lady I had no idea how many people would want to get involved. It's amazing so many people came together.

"When she had her accident it hit home, you walk out the door one day and your children never see you again. It hit a lot of hearts."

Currently the money raised can afford a sculpted bench and some pods for children to sit on. The memorial was chosen as Mrs Burgess would often come to the Sheppey playing fields in Cropthorne with her young daughters, Hannah, Eve and Emma.

But in order to get the six pods for the youngsters they still need a bit more money.

"The seating area will be absolutely beautiful," added Mrs Mothersole, who lived just doors from Mrs Burgess.

"At the moment we can only afford a few pods. So this (murder mystery) is to raise some money to finish it off. That is what we are hoping to be able to do.

"It is going to be a really proud moment when we sit on that bench for the first time."

Murder at St Michael is taking place at Cropthorne Village Hall from 7.30pm on Saturday, June 21.

Tickets for the evening are £15 and include a two course meal and can be bought from Jane Segar on 01386 861078 or janesegar@btinternet.com.