Thank you for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.
Many thanks to those of you who have already supported me on this Mont Blanc charity challenge 2-9 July 2011 to raise funds for Grove House Hospice.
Our team of six (Ciara, Claire, Tom, Dick, Beric and myself) had a great time climbing three 3,500m peaks in the Mont Blanc Massif - Aiguille du Tour, Tête Blanche and La Petite Fourche in glorious weather. These were tough challenges in themselves – ropes and crampons being the order of the day as we crossed expanses of snow and glaciers with hidden crevasses. Higher up, difficult rock scrambling (still wearing crampons!) across exposed ledges took us to the summits.
Unfortunately, later in the week, strong winds and low cloud prevented us from climbing Mont Blanc itself. However, on Friday, three of us (including myself) were able to climb Gran Paradiso - the highest mountain in Italy at 4061m - a gruelling but fabulous 11½ hour day!
All this is to raise funds for Grove House in memory of a close friend of mine whose journey with cancer was not so fortunate as mine has been.
Grove House is a great cause. It provides practical support - alleviating symptoms like pain, and feelings of helplessness and vulnerability - for people facing the trauma of cancer and other life-threatening illnesses in my home city of St Albans and the surrounding area of SW Hertfordshire.
I've valued the support of Grove House on my own journey with advanced malignant melanoma and am grateful for the miracle of survival - now ten years!
Every penny I raise will go to Grove House.
Donations can still be made through JustGiving - simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
