They chuckled when I said I wanted to climb Kilimanjaro for charity ... 

I am a partially sighted, overweight, unfit smoker but I wanted to do something extraordinary. My journey began a year ago when a friend suggested I might want to combine my fundraising efforts with a really big fitness incentive as, like so many others, since starting my own business my health has taken a back seat. At first I was afraid ... I was petrified! But, you know, I think I actually can  do this ... 

The training... 

Having signed up it struck me: I'm really going to have to give this everything - you can't commit to climbing a mountain and only go halfway! Whilst I can't do much about the fact that I'm partially sighted (the night summit is going to prove a heck of a challenge!), I'm throwing myself into this with vigour: training sessions, endless walking with the dog, pounding miles out on the treadmill and weekend jogs with my three young sons at Park Run and finally it's making a difference: my lungs feel more open, I can keep going for longer without fear of collapse and my suits are starting to swim on me. I'm on the right path here...

There's still a long way to go ... but I'm getting there. 

I set off on the Lemosho Trail on 21 September 2017. It sounds like a long time away but the weeks are flying by. The support I get from family and friends and from those kind enough to donate is a huge incentive. Encouragement keeps me going, together with the knowledge that I'm raising funds to make a positive and lasting difference via the St. James's Place Foundation. 

The Charity ... *drumroll please

I'm raising money for the St. James's Place Foundation . The Foundation is a grant-making charity with a difference. Funds are raised and donated by the St. James's Place community and matched pound for pound by the company. That means that for every pound you donate to my fundraising campaign, the company adds another pound. 

The Foundation will MATCH your donation... 

If you donate £20 and add Gift Aid, that adds up to a £25 donation. The St. James's Place Foundation will match the donation pound for pound, adding a further £25. So, the Foundation's charities receive the benefit of a £50 donation for every £20 you donate. Amazing!!

Where will your donation go?

Since its inception in 1992, the community has raised and distributed over £50 million to good causes operating in the UK and abroad. Since its formation in 1992, the Foundation has aimed to make a positive and lasting change to the lives of children and young people. Cherishing Children it's largest focus area, although work stretches across three main themes:

• Cherishing Children
  
• Combating Cancer
  
• Supporting Hospices
  

Every year hundreds of smaller one-off grants are made, helping hundreds of charities in the UK and abroad. Approximately 80% of the money raised goes to supporting UK charities, with the remaining 20% being allocated to charities overseas, particularly those helping children and young people to escape poverty, malnutrition and neglect.

Close to my heart...

In the past, the Foundation has helped many of the charities that I personally champion, including Give 4 B.E.T.H, Stonepillow, Love Your Hospital, Dentaid, The Teenage Cancer Trust and MacMillan Cancer Research. We have also just secured a £10,000 Foundation Grant for Aerobility, the cheque for which I am honoured to be presenting shortly! 

See it for yourself!

To read more about the Foundation visit: http://www.sjpfoundation.co.uk

...and FINALLY

Enormous THANKS for visiting. Your donation, however small, will help disabled and terminally ill children, local hospices and hospitals and respite for those who really do need it. 

I COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT YOU

Brad x