My daughter, Heather and I, will be participating together in The Challenge.

Heather’s little boy, Jem, now aged 4, was born with TOFS, a rare congenital condition of the oesophagus. One in 3,500 babies are affected. We have tremendous admiration for the fantastic skill shown by the surgeon when performing the operation to correct this, the day after he was born, and for all the follow up care provided by The University Hospital Lewisham.

Jem is doing really well but still has the annual winter problems with breathing and respiration.

We applaud the support given to tofs children and their families by theTOFS charity. It can be a dramatic, distressing and worrying time when acute tofs related attacks occur,and it is reassuring to share the problems with other TOFS members and gain advice on dealing with the symptoms.

The Thames Path is an enticing and stimulating route for The Challenge in which we are both looking forward to participating  and completing.

The walk is 30 miles along the Thames Path, between Runnymede and Henley! I am at this stage a little worried about my level of fitness but am determined to train and raise my game in support of a truly worthy cause.