Friday 23 August 2013

Thankyou

Well its been a few days since I arrived back in Porthcawl. Back to reality with a bang :)
I've been more tired sat at my desk in work then I was actually walking around the country.

It still all hasn't really sunk in yet, the enormous amount of support you have all showed Gareth, Tracy and their family on Sunday and throughout the entire challenge still overwhelms them.

The press coverage we've had over the last few days has been superb and I have since taken phonecalls from members of the public both congratulating my efforts but also enquiring more about the disease and how this new South Wales Care Network can benefit hundreds of people in the MND community - which is exactly what I set out to achieve.

Fundraising update - wow.... where do I start !
This whole walk was centered around awareness, making sure people at least knew what MND was and how it affects people like Gareth and his family. The response we had back has completely surpassed all expectations. £5000 was a notional target I set myself.

As at time of writing, this is what you fantastic people out there have helped us to raise so far :-

Online JustGiving Donations = £8810.60
Text Donations = £303
Monies raised offline = £2296.45
Gift Aid Contributions = £1924.04

The monies keep coming in too, unbelievable ! People can still donate, and should :) !

I would like to take the opportunity to thank the following for putting me up in their own homes/arranging accommodation for me and feeding me so well :-

The Allport family
Daisy Silcock 
Mike & Deborah Silcock
Rhian (logistics manager!) & Gareth
Glenda & the Burke Family
Cath Pocock
Carol & Tim Twells
Kaye & Chris Shepherd
Betty & Terry James
Julia Ford-Jones & Family
Phil Morgan
Ian Hearne & Mike at the Pentre Arms
Jonathan Collier & Family
Stuart, Heidi & Abigail Davies
Peter & Derryn Davies 
Winford Davies
Nigel Thomas
Sue Muddleman (The Bay Bistro)
Oh and my wonderful Mum of course.

I also need to acknowledge spin off fundraising which has helped bolster my total figure :-

Richie Robinson (insane hair growth!!)
All at the Esplanade Hotel (drag night)
People of Fairbourne
Welsh Women Walking
Luana, Laura, Liz & all who organised cake sale at Solva !
Astra Ltd
Joanne Thorne, Family & Friends
David McNally
Neil Davis
And everyone who kindly donated raffle/auction prizes.

To all my fellow walkers along the route, thankyou for taking time out to join me.

To those who kindly transported me to my start/end points and those who relieved me of my rucksack occasionally.

To everyone who has sponsored me and donated online etc - thankyou very much indeed.

To Nick Allport for the walk4mnd website and Rhyd Cole for the awesome logos he designed.
And of course, thankyou to all the Welsh local MNDA branches, who helped gather support, organise events and logistically ensured I was kept on track !

To thank everyone who has contributed, and supported me over the last 38 days will take a shed load of hours & typing !! Over the course of the next week or so, I will aim to contact you all directly to personally thank you. 

Of course, it would be wrong not to thank my gorgeous family ! Thankyou for your eternal support. I won't be leaving you for that long again!

I've said it before but I'll say it again........ what started off as a personal, solo, crazy idea to walk around the perimeter of Wales to try and spread the word a little, has morphed into a huge event. A journey which you have all embraced and embarked upon with me. I wouldn't have got through all of this without your assistance, generosity and motivation.

I've got lost (a few times.............), I've been harrassed by various animals (a few times........), I've danced with a Drag Queen (thankfully only the once !), I've humiliated myself in public (a few times..........), I've met fantastic people along the way, I've visited some awesome places and seen some spectacular scenery. But much more important than all that, I've been able to get through to a vast audience and in some small way educate them a little on the disease. That was my goal.

We've appeared in every local newspaper around the Welsh coast, Daily Telegraph Online, on BBC Radio Wales & BBC Radio2, BridgeFM, WaveRadio, RealRadio, Western Mail, SW Echo, SW Evening Post, Seaside News, Glamorgan Gazette, The Gem and even had a cheeky little shout-out on Sky Sports 1 ! The Facebook pages have been well attended and approx 400 twitter followers have followed the progress.
Still waiting for the TV networks to hook into this in some way, I'll keep trying.

So where now ? This is just the start, awareness needs to be continual. This needs to become viral. We've started something good here, as a community we should easily be able to reach out further people. I have a few ideas up my sleeve and will sit down with Gareth & Tracy to discuss.

I'll do anything, go anywhere for this wonderful family, so if you know of anything, have any ideas let me know :) Corporate Sponsorship is always welcomed too..............................

I would just ask you all to please continue fighting this cause for them, hope is a powerful force.

Once again - thankyou very much indeed.

I'm off to soak my feet - I've got the Great North Run in 3 weeks !!

2 comments:

  1. "Hope is a good thing. maybe the best of good things. and no good thing ever dies" The Shawshank Redemption

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