Yorkshire PostHuge support for Madeleine campaign
Norah Paul, Anne-Marie Wright and Sheila Cowell.
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Published Date: 17 May 2007
By Rob Waugh
A website set up to spread the image of missing Madeleine McCann across Europe has received five million hits in 24 hours, its Yorkshire organisers said today.
Revealing details of supporters and the scale of the campaign, Michael Wright, a relative of the McCanns from Skipton, said: "This is just the start. Each day brings more offers of help."
Speaking outside the apartment in Praia da Luz, where the McCanns have spent the last two weeks waiting for news of Madeleine, Mr Wright said the family had been overwhelmed with offers of support.
He said a cash fund formally launched yesterday would be used to pay for the campaign and engage experts both in the area of publicity and the detection process itself.
There has been speculation that the family may eventually hire private investigators to conduct inquiries in countries beyond Portugal if need be.
Mr Wright, who owns a software company in Leeds, confirmed the scope of the campaign, although primarily aimed at Europe, could also spread to North Africa across the sea from the Algarve.
Speaking to reporters today, Mr Wright said: "Gerry and Kate are taking immense strength from the support and good wishes that they are receiving from all over the world.
"They have been totally overwhelmed by offers from individuals, small companies, and large multi-national corporations.
"Both of them are firmly fixed on the campaign which is designed to raise Madeleine's profile right across Europe and ensure we bring her home.
"Their purpose is to turn hope into action.
"Whilst we are not experts in campaigning, the situation we have found ourselves in has galvanised us into action. We are leaving no stone unturned."
Asked what sort of advice the family were being given, Mr Wright said: "One of the reasons for the Madeleine fund is to engage professionals who can help us with the campaign and the whole detection process or supplement that."
He said the campaign had begun through contacts the family had in their home towns of Leicester, Liverpool and Glasgow but had now gone international.
He released a list of backers including household names in the oil, banking, retail, telecoms and travel sectors.
He said some companies had agreed to include Madeleine's image on every outgoing email they send while other initiatives included text message campaigns, poster distributions and financial support.
He said: "We want to make sure that if Madeleine isn't in Portugal that the rest of Europe is aware of the image of this little girl.
"Our target is to reach the saturation that we know has been achieved in the UK and certainly in the Algarve.
"We want everyone to have an image of Madeleine in whatever country in Europe they visit, which can only help in bringing her home."
Backers of the campaign from the oil sector were BP, Shell, Esso, Texaco and Total/Els, who have all committed to poster distribution, with a clutch of Spanish companies also set to confirm.
In the finance sector, the Royal Bank of Scotland is involved in cash collections for the fund while Spain's Banco Santander and France's Credit Agricole and La Poste are distributing thousands of posters in branches.
On the high street, food giant McDonald's is distributing posters across its branches in Europe, while the French supermarket operator Carrefour is set to do the same in France, Portugal and Spain.
Finally, in the travel sector, British Airways is showing posters on flights, BAA is doing the same at all of its UK airports while Budget car rental is also displaying posters.
Earlier, Mr Wright's family revealed that Madeleine's two-year-old twin brother and sister wave at the TV screen when they see pictures of their sister.
Sheila Cowell, Madeleine's great-aunt, said: "The twins ask where Madeleine is. They wave at her when she is on the TV – they don't really understand."
Mrs Cowell, of Skipton, said Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, were so far managing to cope with the ordeal of their daughter's having been snatched from their holiday apartment, on Portugal's Algarve, which has devastated the entire family.
She said she had reacted with "total horror" when she was woken just after midnight two weeks ago to be told Madeleine had gone missing. She added: "I don't think you can really explain to anybody the feeling. It's unbelievable."
Her daughter, Anne-Marie Wright, Kate McCann's cousin, said the abduction and what had happened since was "almost surreal". Mrs Wright, also of Skipton, said: "You can't quite believe it. It's someone you're related to, that you love, who is on TV who all this is happening to.
"It's your worst nightmare. You have to believe that things like this barely ever happen so when they do it's just shocking."
Mrs Cowell added: "We're hoping every time we switch on the TV that it's going to be good news. We still believe she's going to be alive somewhere."
Norah Paul, another of Madeleine's great-aunts, who was visiting her relatives in Skipton from her home in Vancouver when Madeleine went missing, said: "For the first few days you couldn't watch it on TV without falling apart. Watching your niece (Madeleine's mother Kate) and what she is going through is very, very hard.
"They are going through the worst nightmare of their lives. It's up and down. They are both very strong people in their faith and in their family and if anybody can handle it they can. The worst time for them is when they wake up in the morning and Madeleine's still missing and another day has gone."
Mrs Paul, who has been out to Portugal to help the effort to find Madeleine, described the warmth of the villagers of Praia da Luz as amazing. "They are so lovely, it has really helped Kate and Gerry."
All three relatives said they reacted with scepticism when news broke of a suspect being detained by Portuguese police.
Mrs Cowell said: "We hope there is going to be some good coming of it but we're not believing everything straight away."
Mrs Paul added: "There's been a few times when there's been anticipation and it's come to nothing. We are being very circumspect."
The overall effect on the family has been both dramatic and traumatic. Mrs Paul described the public emotion over Madeleine as being like a "tidal wave", adding: "Our family will never be the same again, even when she's found. It will be like AM and PM."
Mrs Cowell said: "She's just the most gorgeous, happy, vivacious creature you could ever meet. She's so friendly. She has to be alive, a child like that."
Mrs Paul added: "Our hope is maybe a couple have her and they're looking after her, that's the scenario we go to."
The family in Skipton urged Yorkshire people to donate to the fund launched yesterday and to give as much publicity as possible to help find Madeleine.
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