If somebody said to you they were raising much needed funds  by skating 1000 miles after having a cardiac arrest you’d probably wonder why, wouldn’t you?

Well, that’s exactly what I’m doing, because it’s time for me to ‘give back’ for the treatment I received and another personal reason which I’ll come to in a moment, but to do it, I’ve taken up roller skating at 67 just to make it a little more interesting and my goal is to raise awareness by skating 1000 miles in 4 stages:

1 - 25k - (completed month 1)

2 - 100 miles - (completed 16.10.22)

3 - 500 miles - (18.06.23)

4 - 1000 miles

What it’s all about

Every year in the UK over 100,000 babies are born premature or require medical attention. 

New Life is a registered charity that is dedicated to raising money for special care baby units across the UK. 

The Charity was launched by Trevor Goodall in 1995 in memory of his sons Joshua and Samuel who were born 3 months early weighing just 1lb 1oz and 1lb 3oz. Sadly, they both died after a week, but their struggle inspired Trevor to do something and to make a difference. 

In 2021, Trevor and his fundraisers hit the incredible £1m goal. They are now embarking on an exciting new aim to raise £2m

Which brings me to my personal reasons for joining this cause.

On November 17th 1980 our daughter Natalie was born prematurely, her birth date should have been 5th January 1981 making her 7 weeks early, weighing in at 2lb, the proverbial ‘bag of sugar’.

Had it not been for the amazing staff at The Royal Gwent hospital’s special care baby unit, my personal story, my daughter’s entrance into the world and subsequently  her three daughters later, two who are now teenagers and the youngest fast approaching her teens, might not have been quite the same without the doctors, nurses and all the paediatric care more than forty years ago.

It’s now our family history and we as parents were amazed then and still are now at what happened which was totally out of our control, but thankfully rested with some amazing nursing staff.

These are my reasons for joining this great cause and with your help in donating as little or as much as you can towards this cause, we can make a difference.

Donating through JustGiving is 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. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity..

(You can also follow my progress at https://www.facebook.com/80skates)

Mike Lyons

UPDATED 17.03.24

Current total 67