WATCHED by her proud soldier uncle, a three-year-old tot walked two and a half miles to raise cash for Britain s wounded troops. Her legs may not be long, but nothing was going to stop little Leia Brown as she headed off from her home in Arnold Road, Dage

WATCHED by her proud soldier uncle, a three-year-old tot walked two and a half miles to raise cash for Britain's wounded troops.

Her legs may not be long, but nothing was going to stop little Leia Brown as she headed off from her home in Arnold Road, Dagenham on Saturday (July 25).

In an impressive 35 minutes the youngster reached her nanny's house in Spencer Road, Rainham, to be greeted by cheers from a big group of family and friends.

The sponsored trek, first mentioned in the POST in April, has raised �1050 for Help for Heroes, a charity which provides practical support to injured service men and women.

But what made this day extra special was the unexpected visit from Leia's uncle, Lance Corporal Alan Thomas, who was posted to Afghanistan with 2nd Battalion The Rifles earlier this year.

Leia's mum, Emma, said: "He wasn't supposed to be coming home. But then a couple of weeks ago we found out he'd been given leave and was going to be here to watch Leia do the walk. We couldn't believe it!"

"Leia was so happy to see him. And he actually joined us on the walk, which I think spurred her on. There were no piggy backs, she walked the whole route."

Emma wants to thank everybody who sponsored her daughter. "I'm overwhelmed by the support. I was aiming for �200 and we went way beyond that. It's absolutely fantastic."

Emma says the day was a fantastic boost for her brother as well.

"Alan is very proud of what Leia has done. Things have been quite tough in Afghanistan recently and I think this has been good for his morale"

You can still sponsor Leia online at www.justgiving.com/leiabrown.