On Friday18 June 2010 cash and carry giant Bestway hosted a fabulous charity race day at Royal Ascot for over 500 guests, with all funds raised donated to The National Brain Appeal. Younus Sheikh and Zameer Choudry, Bestway’s managing director and chief executive, presented Theresa Dauncey and consultant neurologist Dr Hadi Manji with a cheque for £60,000. The money raised by Bestway will be split evenly between the Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases and Molly’s Fund.*
Many thanks to London Borough of Camden, which chose The National as the Mayor’s official charity for 2009. Staff raised over £15,000 through a staff fun run, a dinner at the House of Commons, and a Christmas appeal to local businesses in aid of Molly’s Fund. We also particularly appreciated the reception held for our top fundraisers in the Mayor’s Parlour at Camden Town Hall, which recognised the wonderful work they’re doing all around the country.
Congratulations to Ron Gainsford, longstanding fundraiser and friend of The National who was awarded an OBE in recognition of his services to consumers and to businesses. Ron has been Chief Excutive of the Trading Standards Institute since 2002. “My life’s work has been in consumer protection and fair trading but without The National I wouldn’t have my life,” he says. “I will always owe them.”
For most of us a trip to Paris involves the comfort of a train or a plane but not so for David Sharpe who cycled to Paris over the May bank holiday weekend. David said, “Having been a patient at The National and benefited from the extraordinary people and expertise provided, I wanted to be able to give more back. The ride was a great personal achievement.” We couldn’t be more grateful to David who raised over
£6,000 for his chosen charity.
Inspired by tales of a Swedish adventurer who cycled from his home to Everest base camp before ascending the peak. Dr Sebastian Crutch from the Dementia Research Centre, decided to embark on his own London to Mont Blanc challenge in August.
This epic adventure saw Sebastian and friend, Toby, cycle 660 miles from London to Chamonix in the French Alps and then climb Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Western Europe. Sebastian has raised over £6,500 for the Myrtle Ellis Fund* to fund support groups for individuals with rare and atypical young onset dementias.
Peter Freeman’s daughter Nicola crashed her car into a tree in May exactly one month before her 18th Birthday. Nicki was taken to the Surgical Intensive Treatment Unit and her friends from St Albans High School for Girls and family have raised over £5,000 so far. Peter Freeman’s words do better justice to this than ours ever could, as he said “Fundraising has not been about saying “thank you” for saving my daughter’s life; there are not enough words or money for that. Realistically, that was not in the gift of the SITU team, they do their incredible job for every patient. Other families who shared our long hours were not as fortunate, but we all know the SITU staff could have done no more.
Our thanks are for the small things that made a huge difference to us. The hot toast at one in the morning on our first night; for always taking the time to explain what was
happening now and what might happen tomorrow; for being honest and saying “we don’t know”. Thanks for washing her hair and for treating her as a teenage girl would want to be even though she was unaware of it. For giving her and us care and support that went beyond the best ITU care, because of the small things they did on top.”
In the last three years over £157,000 has been raised by friends and family in memory of their loved ones. We are incredibly grateful to every one and want to say a special
thank you to Alice McKay Hill and Charlotte Baldwin for their incredible fundraising in memory of their husbands, Andreas Theodoros Papadopoulos and Matthew Baldwin.
Our thanks go to Michael Powell and his wife Jenny who raised £15,000 through their tandem cycle challenge to Nice. In typically understated style, Michael thanked his
supporters saying, “Your support kept us going. It was much harder than I had realised, I had done a long tandem ride as a 21 year old but had forgotten the effect of time!”
Oliver and Clare Hallam headed up a group of 14 ‘friends in tight suits’ who completed the Mimizan Triathlon in the searing 33 degree heat in south west France. The team raised mover £10,000 for the Pick’s Disease Support Group* in memory of Olly’s father, Julian who died in February 2010. Olly told us, “I have found it an extremely moving experience to see my friends take part so wholeheartedly in this physical challenge. Most of them had never done a triathlon before. Thank you.”
After a gruelling 12 hours and 48 minutes of running, cycling, swimming
and climbing, Emma and Harry McGowan made it over the finishing line at the Kindrochit Quadrathlon and even managed to raise a Claymore sword to slash a watermelon in half and stop the clock! Said Emma, “The quadrathlon was a most amazing experience and was definitely one of the toughest mental and physical challenges we’ve ever done, but we wouldn’t have missed it for all the Irn Bru in Scotland.” Many thanks to Emma and Harry for raising over £4,400 for Molly’s Fund.
On Tuesday 28th September, Alistair Emery completed an epic 12 day 976 mile cycle ride across Britain from Land’s End to John O’Groats. He donned his cycling shorts in memory of Molly Lane Fox and has already raised over £25,000 for Molly’s Fund. Alistair said “It was challenging in so many ways, both physically and mentally. I have been blown away and humbled by the incredible generosity of so many people.” www.rideformolly.co.uk
Team Dauncey comprising The National Brain Appeal Chief Executive Theresa Dauncey and siblings
Julie-Anne, William and Christopher completed the Edinburgh Marathon on 23rd May
2010. Despite sweltering conditions they all crossed the finishing line and have raised almost £13,000 for Molly’s Fund.
