Woman still pledges to donate $1.5 million to sick teen

By Gabrielle Stuart

A woman who said she would give $1.5 million for potential life saving treatment to teenager Maddie Collins is adamant she will honour her pledge.

At her modest rural Canterbury home this week, she told the Star: "It'll get through to them."

But Maddie's mother, Sarah Manson Collins, is resigned to the fact the money will never arrive after several weeks of "empty promises".

The saga began in early June when the woman contacted Manson Collins saying she had come into a $42 million inheritance and wanted to donate $1.5 million to help Maddie.

The 13-year-old St Margaret's College student has kidney failure with potentially life-threatening complications, and her family have been trying to raise more than $700,000 to get her a transplant in the United States.

Last week the Star revealed the $1.5 million pledge was probably bogus, devastating the family when they are struggling to raise the money needed to help their daughter.

Manson Collins said the woman had been convincing, visiting the family home and then regularly messaging to say the money was on its way.

But, as time went by, they realised the money would never arrive.

However, on Tuesday the woman told the Star the Manson Collins family had nothing to be concerned about. Her bank was causing the delay, she said.

"I'll get some paperwork back and the first lot should go right through to them. The bank just can't pay that much at one time," she said.

The woman said she was meeting the bank and her lawyer this week. However, when the Star phoned her on Wednesday the number she gave the newspaper did not work.

When asked if she could show the Star any paperwork from the bank or the lawyer, she replied she didn't have any.

She said she could not remember the lawyer's name or what firm he worked for.

The inheritance had been left to her nine months ago by a childhood friend.

He had lived in the United Kingdom where he established several successful businesses, but had moved back to Christchurch six or seven years ago.

"I wanted to give it [money] away because it's far too much," she said.

She said she saw Maddie's plight and fundraising articles in the news media and approached the family. She also planned to donate money to other sick children.

Manson Collins said yesterday she was worried other families would be put through the same thing her family had.

"I don't think she's realised the devastation she has caused this family. It's like having the rug pulled out from under our feet, because we were really hoping this would mean Maddie could get the transplant and go back to school and be able to be a normal teenager," she said.

If the woman kept messaging her, she planned to make an official police complaint.

About $170,000 has already been raised to help Maddie get a kidney replacement at the John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, United States.

The treatment offered there would make it more likely Maddie's body would accept a donated kidney, even if it was not a perfect match.