Just a little over a year ago, my late father lost his life to a stroke...

Back in 2019, he had had his first stroke - he was a little over 60. Dad's 'recovery' from this first stroke was not plain sailing. He ended up with locked in syndrome for a month (unable to move but mentally awake), followed by a slow and painful return of some muscle function. In the end, he surpassed all doctors expectations for how much he did recover, unfortunately falling just short of walking my sister down the aisle.

Every year 100,000 people have a stroke and a 1/4 of these people are under the age of 65. That's 25,000 younger people whose lives are changed in an instant.

Different Strokes empowers these younger survivors to recover, just as Dad did to some extent following his stroke. His slow progress over the years made such a difference to his life.

I'm participating in the Geordieman Triathlon - a gruelling ironman (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile cycle and 26.2 mile run) up in Newcastle on 1st September to help these young victims reclaim their lives. Any money you can give will be much appreciated by myself and the beneficiaries of your generosity.