Thanks for taking the time to visit our JustGiving page.

Sharon and I have battled with our weight for some time and have been managing this with some success through the Cambridge Weight Plan and with our fabulous consultant Nichola Schwarz (www.cambridgeweightplan.com/counsellor.asp?No=20833).  We both feel, however, that we need a bit more motivation to keep us on track (and away from those yummy curries – at least for a bit!), cue Nichola’s fantastic suggestion of a sponsored slim.

We have pledged to lose 60llbs (or 27.2kg for those who prefer metric) each – yes that’s right each – by 1^st April 2011 in time for my first appointment to find ‘that’ wedding dress and a much deserved lovely bikini clad beach holiday for Sharon and for this we have chosen to support the Jessica Taylor Charity Fund.

Jess was diagnosed with a brain tumour  - a medulloblastoma - on 1 August 2007 and since then has had surgery and the adjuvant therapies. These have not been without trauma. During her surgery Jess suffered a stroke, which has left her with walking and balance disabilities. Jess’s tumour is currently behaving, but there is nothing further the NHS can do for her.

Prior to collaborating with brainstrust, Jess’s fund had already raised enough money to pay the purchase of wireless laptops and wall mounted flat screens for the John Radcliffe Hospital to enable youngsters who are receiving cancer treatment to communicate via the internet.

Now that this target has been reached, The Jess Taylor Charity Fund is working with brainstrust to raise funds for Jess to have further treatment, possibly in the USA and this is where we want to help.

We spotted Jess’ mum Karen in the autumn edition of the Cambridge Inspiration magazine and were indeed inspired by her accomplishment of dropping 8 dress sizes to improve the quality of life for her and her daughter and be the mum that Jess could be proud of. We knew straight away that this was the perfect charity to support and honour the achievements that both Jess and Karen have made so far and help them to succeed in their future endeavours.

To prove that we are completely serious about this, and so that  Jess does not lose out should we fail (which we wont so there!) we would pay everyone back the money that they donate and we hope that by commiting to this we can convince the (admittedly, not entirely unfounded) skeptics out there who may doubt us but we are positive that we will succeed and our skinny selves will be very smug when we do!

And now for the Justgiving info.......

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 and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.