We made it!!!

After a truly amazing adventure, we have safely returned to English soil and hung up our boots.  The scenery was beyond breath-taking and the sense of achievement is immense.  We found the trekking itself to be surprisingly enjoyable, however with 25 degrees of heat and endless steps, which at times required climbing with both hands and feet, it was certainly challenging. The daily update we received from Chestnut Tree House with news on the children in their care really spurred us on and brought meaning to the words on our T-shirts ‘Making Every Step Count’.

We are so so grateful for all the support and donations and thrilled that our fundraising target of £6000 has been smashed.  Collectively as a group we raised over £90,000 which exceeded all expectations. This means the donations will pay for the running of the hospice for two weeks rather than just the time we were away. Having been amongst other trekkers that had found themselves using the hospice first hand, we can’t stress the importance that fundraising like this must continue.

Now back without our new friends and the endless undulations, life feels a little flat in more ways than one; however our memories will last a lifetime and hopefully mean more families are able to make their own memories at Chestnut Tree House.

Thank you again for all you support

Thank you for visiting our page.  

It was a recent Thank you that we received from Chestnut Tree House for our continuing support that sparked our latest and probably our hardest challenge yet. Hearing that there were only a few places left on the Chestnut China Challenge we felt we had to take part.... so here we are... 

On the 10th October we will fly out to China with 50 other challengers to spend 5 consecutive days trekking parts of the Great Wall. Between all of the people taking part, we hope to raise enough money to pay for all care services at the hospice for the full nine days we are away.

Chestnut Tree House is a remarkable place; it is the only children's hospice in Sussex providing care for children with progressive life shortening illness. Not only does this special home create fantastic memories for the children, the support and facilities stretch to the parents, siblings and grandparents too.

We were lucky enough to visit the house recently and were overwhelmed by the facilities available and the fun, homely atmosphere it provides. With a computer room, wet and dry play areas, gardens, hydrotherapy pool, music room, multi-sensory room, reflections, meadow garden and Woodland Walk enjoyment is the main focus.

The House is by no means inexpensive to run; costing over 3 million a year (with less than 8% of funding provided by the government) Chestnut Tree has to rely heavily on the support of the local community.  Which brings us on the main reason for taking part in this challenge.... yes it's an amazing once in a lifetime experience which we are fortunate to be able to take part in but our main reason is the only reason - to raise as much money as possible so Chestnut Tree House can keep making a difference to hundreds of children and their families in Sussex.

Our target is £6000 which can only be raised with your support, please help this amazing place by giving a donation no matter how small, it will be so appreciated - Thank you xx  The trip expenses will be funded by ourselves, therefore all donations made will go to Chestnut Tree House in their entirety.

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.