Help us celebrate the amazing work St Leonards Hospice do every day!

Our fundraising challenge is to say “thank you” to the incredible care they gave to our friend, Natalie Goulden, earlier this year helping her to get back on her feet during her current battle with cancer.

The Challenge

During the weekend of 28-29 July 2018, a group of Natalie's closest friends and family will be undertaking the UK Three Peaks Challenge with the aim to raise £5,000 for St Leonards Hospice in York. It’s no mean feat as it involves walking the highest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales – all within 24 hours! There will be lots of walkers and drivers taking part, with Natalie cheering us on from base camp. The challenge starts in Scotland at Ben Nevis, which at 4,409 ft is the tallest of the three. From there the expedition will drive south into the Lake District where they climb Scafell Pike (3,209 ft). The final of the three is the Welsh mountain, Snowdon, standing at no less than 3,560 ft. It’s tiring just thinking about it but it’s all for a good cause…

Why we’re doing it

Natalie’s battle with cancer started in 2013 when she was just 25 years old. Luckily it was caught at a stage where it could be treated with surgery and shortly after Natalie was given the all clear and life continued as normal.

Unfortunately in August 2017 Natalie's mobility deteriorated and was told that the cancer had returned with scans showing a tumour within her spine and surrounding lymph nodes. The doctors prescribed a single round of radiotherapy to help Natalie regain mobility along with a series of palliative chemotherapy sessions every three weeks to keep the tumours under control.

After undergoing radiotherapy Natalie was in a large amount of pain and struggled to get around her family home. Natalie's family got in touch with the community nurses who were able to find a place for her at St Leonards Hospice. At the time we didn’t even know it was an option and it transformed our idea of why hospices existed and the care they offer.

Who are St Leonards Hospice?

St Leonards Hospice is an independent charity, providing specialist palliative care and support for local people with life-limiting illnesses in and around York. The care received is free of charge to patients and their families. However, only of third of their annual costs are covered by the NHS. As a charity they rely heavily on the generosity of the public to raise over £5 million each year to run St Leonards Hospice. This equates to £574 for every hour of every day!

During Natalie's stay at the hospice she received the greatest amount of support and care from the wonderful team at St Leonards Hospice. The beautiful views, excellent facilities and most of all the kind and talented staff helped Natalie prepare both physically and mentally for her chemotherapy.

Our target

As a small “thank you” for all this care, we hope to raise £5,000 for St Leonards Hospice so they can continue the amazing work they do for others in similar situations.

So please dig deep to support this wonderful charity. Donating through JustGiving is simple and once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity.

Want to get involved?

If anybody is interested in taking part in the walk itself, please get in touch, the more the merrier.

About Natalie

If you would like to read more about Natalie's story you can follow her page on instagram: @smiling_at_cancer