In 2015 I was diagnosed with an aggressive brain cancer. The journey that followed was, at times, a lonely one. Until in 2017 I discovered Yes to Life, and it was, quite simply, like coming home.

I was surrounded for the first time by people approaching their cancer in the same way I was; curious, proactive and refusing to hand over all responsibility for their health.

Since then I've volunteered with Yes to Life for nearly 10 years, first on their helpline for three years and continuing to this day as one of their Wigwam peer support group facilitators, holding space each month for people 'Living Well with Ongoing and Advanced Cancers'. It is truly the greatest honour.

Now more than 10 years since my diagnosis, I'm walking 24 miles of the South West Coast Path to give something back to the charity that changed my life.

As part of the Yes to Life Global Camino Challenge, I'll be walking in solidarity with walkers doing the challenge all over the world. The challenge has a global fundraising target of £100,000 and I'm personally aiming to raise £1,500.

Cancer now affects 1 in 2 people in the UK in their lifetime, and with over 400,000 new diagnoses a year, the chances are it has already touched yours. When it does, navigating the options — what to ask, what to try, where to find support — can feel completely overwhelming. Yes to Life exists to change that.

While others in the challenge walk the Camino Português in Spain, I'll be walking the South West Coast Path along one of the most beautiful and wild stretches of the Devon coast. Starting in Dartmouth, finishing Day 1 at Blackpool Sands (named England's best beach by Condé Nast Traveller!) for a wild swim and wood-fired sauna on the beach 🔥, then pushing on through Slapton Sands and its vast natural lagoon to Start Point Lighthouse, Devon's most southerly tip, on Day 2. As someone who called nearby Broadhempston home, walking this stretch of coast for this cause feels exactly right.

We're keeping costs low so every single penny you donate goes directly to Yes to Life.

📅 Saturday 4 October — Dartmouth to Blackpool Sands (~12 miles)

📅 Sunday 5 October — Blackpool Sands to Start Point Lighthouse (~12 miles)

About Yes to Life:

Yes to Life is the UK's ONLY integrative cancer care charity, founded by Robin Daly after losing his daughter Bryony to cancer. They run a free helpline, a peer support community, an education programme, and a directory of integrative approaches to cancer — helping people with cancer make informed decisions about their treatment and their lives. 98% of people who contact their helpline say it made a difference to them.

Every single penny you donate goes to support that work — helping people find their way through one of life's hardest journeys.

Thank you so much for being here. It means more than I can say. Every donation brings us closer.

💛 Gilly

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

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. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.