Ladies and Gentleman, Boys and Girls of all ages,

Thank you for clicking on my link, to sponsor me for my walk on the Pennine Way with the University of Sheffield. 

For 14 days, myself and 20 colleagues from the University of Sheffield will cover the full Pennine Way walk. This national trail is celebrating its 50th anniversary year and is described as the one of the most spectacular and well loved trails in the UK. On the final day, we will walk from Edale back into Sunny Sheffield. You can find our stories and information on 'The Big Walk' on the following link: - 

http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/alumni/donate/specialfunds/the_big_walk

We are doing this to raise funds for Lung Disease research here at the University of Sheffield, specifically our leading research in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). PAH is a devastating condition in which the blood pressure within the lungs is much higher than normal, putting an enormous strain on the heart. There is currently no cure for PAH but at Sheffield they are already making exciting discoveries that we hope will lead to better treatments and ultimately defeat this condition. The funds we raise from this event will help to accelerate our research into the development of much needed new treatments and make a real difference to lives of patients with PAH.

On a more personal note, the other main reason I will be doing this challenge is in honour of my father-in-law-to-be, Arthur Doman. Arthur walked the Pennine Way back in 1997 when he was 65 to raise Money for Weston Park Hospital after his wife had passed away from Breast Cancer. Arthur has more recently been diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which is an incurable disease and has also suffered from Basal cell carcinoma (skin cancer) over the past few years for which he has had several operations. I will be doing the walk not just to raise money that will look into longer term treatments for lung diseases such as PAH and COPD, but also to do the walk in his honour.

Thank you for taking your time to donate, and you can keep up to date on our progress either here or on our University pages above.

James