Hi all!

On the 15th April, I shall be running the Brighton Marathon for 3 different charities, all of which are extremely close to my heart. I have never run this far in my life which will be extremely difficult to pull off on the day but hopefully with all this training and time put towards the challenge, it will pay off on the day. It's not over until that fat lady is singing! Anything you could spare to give to these 3 amazing charities would be extremely appreciated, and would mean a wonderful amount to a lot of people.

So why 3 charities? Well, all 3 of these charities are very special to me and I just couldn't possibly choose between them all for fundraising. I'll explain a little bit about the amazing work that they carry out and why they deserve to be celebrated...

E-nable Sierra Leone

During the 90s, hundreds of adults and children lost their hands and arms to the brutality of the Civil War. Whilst I was working in Sierra Leone during the Ebola epidemic, I had the pleasure of working with a Colleague Ed Choi. He recognised the need to set up a fundraiser to 3D-print prosthetic limbs. 3D-printed functional prosthetics represent a new and affordable way to deliver hope to this far corner of the world. Their team can produce wrist-powered hands and elbow-powered arms at the cost of £50-200 a piece, depending on the quality of the plastics.

After successfully getting the prosthetic workshop up and running, they are now planning to install solar panels and lightings for the largest amputee village in Sierra Leone this Spring.Your donations will help to find the best prosthetic materials and models most suitable for use in tropical Africa. Part of the funding will also be used to train amputees and give them a life skill to support themselves. This is an absolutely inspirational non-profit social enterprise.

https://www.gofundme.com/enablesierraleone

Bowel Cancer West

My grandad, David Darke, was involved in the establishment of BCW- since being personally diagnosed and cured of Bowel Cancer- and was instrumental in setting up early fund raising activities for BCW.

Originally, the charity was founded to improve survival rates of people with bowel cancer in South West England. Currently the disease has a dangerously low profile, but we are looking to change that through our a dedicated team of volunteers and trustees who ensure that every pound raised is invested effectively to put the brakes on the UK's second biggest killer. The charity focuses on AWARENESS, RESEARCH and TRAINING. Bowel cancer affects people of all ages but is most commonly associated with people over the age of 55. With the South West region hosting a high number of retirees, we face a harder challenge. It's also a misconception that bowel cancer affects only men - it is in fact only slightly more prevalent among males. Your support to will ensure the people across the region know what to look out for. Currently, one in three people know someone with bowel cancer.

http://bowelcancerwest.com/

Cardiac Risk in the Young

Every week in the UK at least 12 people aged 14-35 die of undiagnosed heart conditions. It's more common that people really expect and many of us, including myself, will know at least someone who unfortunately has been affected by this.

This charity has been working to reduce the frequency of young sudden cardiac death. CRY supports young people diagnosed with potentially life-threatening cardiac conditions and offers bereavement support to families affected by YSCD. CRY promotes and develops heart screening programmes and funds medical research which is vital for awareness to be reached. CRY publishes and distributes medical information written by leading cardiologists for the general public. CRY funds specialist referral, screening and cardiac pathology services at leading UK hospitals.

https://www.c-r-y.org.uk/

As you can see all of these are incredible charity organisations. All the money donated I will be splitting exactly 3 ways. If there is a particular charity which you'd like the money to go towards then just let me know. If you can dig deep and spare some money towards these three wonderful causes then that would make me and those you'll be affecting very happy indeed!

Thank you all so much for reading and donating.

Steph xxxx