**Update - Map above shows end of week 4 (June 28th) - The red marker is the Team's combined mileage point, so we are in the middle of the Atlantic and almost at the half way mark of our journey for Donal!*

30 years ago, Donal was diagnosed with a chronic liver condition, PSC. Although the disease caused a lot of fatigue, he managed his condition with medication & regular exercise. Over the last couple of years, however, Donal’s liver began to deteriorate more quickly and in September 2020 he was diagnosed with liver cancer. He was placed on a Liver Transplant list and initially the prognosis was good. As always, Donal was extremely positive and convinced everyone not to worry too much but in January this year there was more devastating news as he learned the cancer had spread. Donal was taken off the liver transplant list and was told the cancer was more aggressive than originally thought and now, heartbreakingly, it was terminal. Even at this stage Donal remained positive, helping those close to him to deal with the news and never thinking of himself.

Donal was the most compassionate, caring, gentle, patient, intelligent, encouraging, unassuming, empathetic, unusual, oblivious, weird, loving, funny, appreciative, and humble human being ever. He was super smart, a Mathematician! He graduated from University College Dublin with a First Class Honours degree in Maths. He subsequently taught Statistics to many people, and coincidentally, he passed away on 'Pi' day, and also the same date as Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein!! Above all, he was truly kind - probably the kindest person I have ever known. Because he meant so much to all of us, the Spatialest team alongside Donal’s family (his wife Julie and children, Paul, Luke, Daniel and Maria), wanted to do something positive in honour of this amazing man so we have set ourselves a challenge.

Spatialest has a NI and a US Office. We have to cover the distance between the office in Coleraine, Northern Ireland and the other in Charlotte, North Carolina which is a distance of 3680 miles! Together, we are travelling on a virtual journey across the Atlantic Ocean to honour our friend, Donal! The challenge begins on June 1st and ends on July 31st, so we have 2 months to run, walk, cycle or swim the distance!

The money raised will go towards Marie Curie and AWARE NI. Marie Curie nurses cared for Donal as they do for so many, allowing him to spend his last precious weeks at home with his family. AWARE NI is another charity which was close to Donal’s heart, always wanting to help people in need. It is the Depression Charity for Northern Ireland offering support and education for people living with depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder. We would be so grateful if you could help us raise some money to help these two amazing charities and to honour Donal Roantree.

**Please note: '2 Team Members' actually means '2 Charities'. The first link below is for the Marie Curie donations, the second is for AWARE NI donations. When you click on the 'Donate' link, you will see the relevant charity name before you donate. All monies go directly to your charity of choice.

Thank you so much for supporting us!

The Spatialest Team and the Roantree family.

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.