What am I doing?
Good question! I am taking part in the Jubilee Sailing Trust trip from Auckland in New Zealand, via the Southern Ocean and around Cape Horn, ending in Stanley in the Falkland Islands. The trip lasts 46 days and will cover 5,200 nautical miles on ‘Tenacious’, the Jubilee Sailing Trust tall-ship and involves crewing the ship alongside other able-bodied and disabled sailors. We will set sail on 11 January 2018. It’s going to be a challenging and arduous trip – not for the faint hearted – and I can’t wait!
Why am I doing it?
I am joining this incredible trip to celebrate the 30th anniversary of my Heart & Lung Transplant and the 20th anniversary of my Kidney Transplant, donated by my fantastic mother.
I was born with a hole in my heart and, by the time I was 16, I was running out of breath and luck. Heart & Lung Transplants were new at the time, and I was one of the first children to receive the operation. Now I’m one of the longest surviving in the world!
I just want the world to know how fantastic transplantation is. In the early days it was a bit experimental, but now donating an organ can be donating a lifetime, even more valuable than back then.
I want to celebrate how blummin’ amazing this has been for me and to raise money for my three chosen charities as a thank you for the essential support I received at different stages in my life. I want to ensure that others coming after me have access to the support that gets us from the cosseting of paediatric care into the self-determination of adult life.
So who am I doing this for?
I am fundraising for three charities that have helped me at key stages of my life;
Heartline – who support families of children born with heart conditions.
The Somerville Foundation – who work with heart children as they grow up through adolescence
Papworth Hospital Charity – this charity supports the research and the care of patients treated at which is an internationally famous Cardio-thoracic centre, Papworth Hospital.
Each of these charities is represented on a separate page in my “Team” within JustGiving. I hope that you will do two things:
1. Please can you share and share again the page and tell your friends your connection to me, or why you are sharing this, so that we can spread it as far and wide as possible.
2. Please do make a donation, whatever amount you want. Please read the pages to find out why these charities are important to me and give to the charity that most strikes a note with you, or if not sure which, then look to see how even the giving is, I would like them to be equal.
Thank you so much for your support. I will keep you updated as the adventure unfolds!
Remember: Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never share them with anyone or send you unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. They'll make sure Gift Aid (an additional 25%) is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer, too. That means more money goes to the charity, faster, with JustGiving.
