Its nearly a year since I came up with the idea of running a marathon - for someone who could barely run 100 metres without stopping and smoked for 5 years it was a bit of shock starting out. 9 months later, The cigarettes are now a distant memory and with 2 half marathons and one 20 mile run under my belt I'm nearly ready for New York. I've decided on Radio Lollipop as my charity of choice because of a friend who volunteers for them and tells me of the great work they do without much help.
Radio Lollipop is an international organisation founded over 25 years ago to provide care, comfort, play and entertainment for children and young people, primarily in hospitals. The service to children and young people is provided entirely by volunteers who have been especially selected, and trained to make a child’s stay in hospital more fun and less frightening.
One in four children are admitted to a hospital before reaching age 14. Though some patients are short-stay, many have a recurring need for care and return repeatedly to hospital. Some who are terminally ill spend much of their short lives in hospital.
Radio Lollipop gives young patients a voice and a choice during their stay. While they can´t say "no" to taking their medicine or receiving treatment, they can request their favourite songs, win prizes and hear their own voices on the radio. Those activities give youngsters a haven of normality in the hospital day which in other respects is strange, different and often scary.
Thanks for your support.
Tim
