How it all started

In July 1991, I travelled to Romania with some 6th formers to work in a local orphanage there over their summer break. It was the first time westerners could visit the country more easily.

Whilst in Romania, I was able to visit another orphanage, to find a little boy some close friends of mine were in the process of adopting and I will never forget my first encounter with him. He was just two years old, had been abandoned at only a few months and he had spent most of his infancy in a small, dirty cot with very little stimulation. I took some toys from my friends and he gleefully played with these, continuously throwing them out of his cot for attention.....

My friends eventually adopted this precious child, Robert and he was nurtured and brought up, with four other brothers, in a Yorkshire home full of great love, support and wisdom. I continued to see him, as he grew, as I did the rest of his family and was delighted to introduce him to my husband Keith, when we got engaged and eventually married. One of our favourite memories on our wedding day is of us walking back down the aisle as man and wife and Robert giving us a huge grin and thumbs up- he approved!

Very sadly, on 15 April 2017, last year, Robert went missing and we subsequently learnt, had died that day in tragic circumstances. He was only 27 and had his whole life in front of him. Our heartbreak can be nothing like that experienced by his family, but we remain immensely sad and will always miss him. Almost a year on, I wish to do a sponsored event in Robert's memory, to raise funds for a little-known charity called Hands of Hope, that is based on the Isle of Man, where my friends, Robert's parents, now live.

The charity does a great deal to help the vulnerable and disadvantaged in NE Romania, such as practical building projects, the distribution of aid and the befriending of needy people. Poverty is rife in many parts of the country and Hands of Hope supports families and individuals in their difficult times. My own support of the charity seems very apt, since it has strong links with the country of Robert's birth: his story has very much inspired me over the years.

My Plans

Starting this April, immediately after Easter, I plan to go on a series of 'Literary Walks' over about a six month period. My challenge will be to visit 100 literary locations, sites or other connections over this period and to provide photographic evidence.

I am starting in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey and will stay in London, exploring locations such as Dr Johnson's house, the Bloomsbury Gardens, Baker Street, Keats' house and so on. Other plans include a visit to Dorset (Hardy), Devon (Coleridge), Cornwall (du Maurier), the Lakes (Wordsworth), Hampshire (Austen), Yorkshire (the Brontes) and Oxford ( C S Lewis, Lewis Carroll) for instance. I shall always walk about five to ten miles a day once in situ and only take other means of transport if absolutely necessary, to enhance the challenge. This will not be easy for me, as walking longer distances, has become harder since I broke my ankle badly, May 2015 and have since lived with metalwork in this- but I will give it a go!

Please dig deep and donate if you can to enable me to support Hands of Hope in their wonderful work. Be assured that my travel to and from any location and any accommodation will be financed by myself. I seek only sponsorship for the walking and my challenge to find 100 places of literary interest, as outlined above. I would also appreciate you sharing my story and page to others in your remit- the wider the better. I shall put up photos after each walk on social media, but I will also contact those not on this to share the same. Robert Sanducan Smith was a fine young man, whose potential was very sadly cut short far too early- but his legacy will hopefully live on in a variety of ways, including his place of birth. The money I raise will help many struggling folk in Romania find a better quality life and especially through education, the means to have a happier future.