Nick Bradshaw, of Fore Street, Kingsbridge, writes:

There are some sour and suspicious people around, so it is good to see my daughter, Jenny, and those like her throwing themselves – literally – into collecting for charity and helping out others less fortunate than themselves.

Jenny has organised bingo nights; run quizzes; jumped from an aeroplane at three miles high; and stood freezing outside supermarkets, all to raise money for three cancer charities. She displays a sense of fun, adventure and commitment that reminds me of her mother, whom she lost to breast cancer 13 years ago.

But, to return to that freezing supermarket collection and the doubting ones...

As she shivered, a woman approached and accused her of not being a real charity collector.

Jenny pointed out that she had been checked by the supermarket, and it was not very likely that they would join in the perpetration of a fraud.

The woman then demanded to know what she did for charity.

Jenny explained that she was doing a lot of different fundraising activities, including a 450-kilometre bike ride through China.

Her interrogator looked up triumphantly.

So, she would be paying for Jenny's Chinese holiday, crowed the shopper, accusing and victorious in equal measure.

Jenny explianed that was not the case and that in fact the cyclists were paying their own fares and costs of accommodation, and any money donated all went to the charity.

The woman questioner grunted and then donated 20p; for which Jenny was and remains extremely grateful.

There was no apology for having called her a fraud, a con artist and a liar. All in all, a hard-earned 20p, I thought.

Thank God for the kind and compassionate young of Kingsbridge – let's see if we grumpy, suspicious, older people can learn from them.