I aDe

Dear Supporters

On 26 April, I completed the London Marathon in memory of a Shire colleague of mine, Gary Hewitt, who very sadly lost his long battle with cancer last year, aged just 36. Gary received enormous support from the MacMillan Nurses who were very attentive to him in his last few weeks. Having consulted with his parents, we agreed that this would be the most appropriate charity to raise money for in his memory and one that Gary would certainly have approved of.

I completed the course in 3 hours 23 minutes without stopping, and I am certain that the memory of Gary and his courage kept me running when the exhaustion hit at around mile 19. I am very keen that Gary is always remembered at Shire. He was a fantastic colleague for many of us, and mentor for those he recruited and managed; he always humoured us with his dry wit and cheered us with his smile. During his illness, his courage and determination were an inspiration to us all.   

All of us are probably impacted by cancer in some way whether as a sufferer, a relative or friend.Through these contributions, you are helping others like Gary and Gary’s family in their time of greatest need. And additionally, you’re helping to ensure thatGary’s important contribution to the success of Shire is never forgotten.

Many thanks to you all for your support. And also a big thanks to Shire who have very kindly matched the contributions made by Shire employees with a single donation of £5,000.   

Simon