Thank you to everybody who has helped to raise funds for Cancerbackup through their own fundraising. As a charity, we rely heavily on donations from individuals and without your dedication and commitment, we would not achieve nearly as much as we do. We really do value and appreciate the time and commitment that you give to us, every contribution really makes a difference ….

Former teacher Heather Marshall tells the story of her battle with cancer and faith in her book, Safe In The Shadow. Heather had mouth cancer requiring a third of her tongue to be removed, and fought long and hard to regain full speech.

Safe In The Shadow is a remarkable book, the fruit of a meticulously kept diary of Heather Marshall's life. Heather recounts, with extreme honesty, the significant events of her life, from student to teacher and wife and mother. One feels privileged to journey with her and her family. (From the foreword by the Rev Canon Neil Russell)

You can get a copy of Safe In The Shadow from http://www.brownstar-publications.co.uk/

Jan & David’s Open Garden near Lostwithiel – September 2007

Long-time supporters Jan and David Guiterman keep the Cancerbackup flag flying in the wilds of Cornwall with their annual open garden event.

There were various stalls including plants, homemade crafts and cards, plus a bring-and-buy sale of useful items and unwanted gifts etc.

Entertainment was provided by the Warm Gold Duo (that’s not the two golden retrievers but a guitar and folksong twosome!) as well as a lively performance from an ensemble of ukulele players.

Over the years, Jan and David have raised thousands of pounds for Cancerbackup and continue to spread the word through their beautiful hand-made cards.

Belhus Country Park 5K – September 2007

Vicky Baynes of Romford picked a beautiful morning to organise friends and family to walk 5K around the local Belhus Country Park on Sunday 2nd September. The sun was shining and the walkers celebrated with a picnic and raffle under three grand marquees! 
 
All of the walkers managed the whole 5K and it was enjoyed by all – especially the donated food and drink! The scenery was stunning and comprised of three lakes, with one in a conservation area. Vicky’s dad managed to complete the walk which made Vicky’s family very proud of him (he is undergoing treatment for Follicular lymphoma). He had a well deserved rest afterwards with a nice cold drink and whilst sitting in the shade.

On behalf of Cancerbackup, thank you to Vicky and friends for all the hard work that went in to organising the event. Vicky is on course to raise £5,000 for Cancerbackup.

24 Hour Badminton Bash – September 2007

A big Cancerbackup thank you goes to supporter, Melanie Smith, who organised a mammoth 24-hour badminton event at South Cave Sports Centre in Brough, East Yorkshire on 1st/2nd September 2007.

Participants of all ages and abilities raised sponsorship, bought raffle tickets and gave donations. The Badminton Bash exceeded all expectations and raised over £2000 for Cancerbackup – a fantastic achievement!

Walking Hadrian's Wall – August 2007

Back in May, Mavina Baker and some of her friends planned a walk along Hadrian’s Wall. Shortly after this one of the group, Mary, was diagnosed with cancer and could no longer join them. Mavina decided to dedicate the walk to Mary and to raise funds for Cancerbackup.

The walk took place between 30th July and 3rd August and, apart from one afternoon, when they all got soaked to the skin, the sun shone. Mavina fundraising has surpassed all expectations and is on target for raising £2,000. Thank you Mavina!

The end of the walk: Andy, Theresa, Mavina and Chris 

Conquering the three peaks – July 2007

The three largest peaks in Great Britain – all in 24 hours. That was the task that Belfast Cancerbackup supporter Patrick Young and his team of Dominic MacKenzie, Paul White, Dave Mercer, Graham Ion and Dominic Johnson attempted in July. Starting with a 4.5 hour climb of Ben Nevis, they then undertook the challenging night-time climb of Scafell Pike in the Lake District, finishing with Snowdon in an overall time of just over 23 hours.

‘It was a great deal more physically and mentally taxing than we had anticipated,’ said Patrick, ‘but it gave us a great sense of achievement.’

Maria’s Headshave – July 2007

Aldershot’s Maria Dodsworth braved the barber’s shears and opted to ‘swap’ her very long hair for a grade two on Sunday 15th July at the Queen’s Avenue Army Show. Yikes! Not content with such a drastic chop but Maria underwent this courageous act with friend Katie Thomas in front of a very large audience.

Maria’s great humour and dedication to see this through resulted in Cancerbackup receiving a whopping cheque for £535. A huge Cancerbackup thank you goes to Maria and Katie for going beyond the call of duty...

Ironman Triathlon – July 2007

Northamptonshire’s Andy Griffin showed grit and determination in completing the 'Ironman' in Austria this July – a 2.4 mile swim followed by a 112 mile bike ride and a full marathon (26.2 mile) run. Andy says:

‘I hatched the three-year plan to do an Ironman while in isolation after high-dose chemotherapy. It was an obvious choice, as I had no swimming, cycling, running nor endurance background!’

So far, he has raised over £5,500.

Scottish Country Dance – May 2007

Cancerbackup would like to say a huge thank you to Mrs Margaret McRitchie and friends for their organisation of a Scottish Country Dance which they conducted in Huntly, Aberdeenshire on Sunday 13th May 2007, with all donations received going to Cancerbackup.

Mrs McRitchie invited a number of her dancing friends to take part in the event. They managed to not only raise funds by sponsors for the dance, but also by issuing raffle tickets and selling DVDs of the dance to the participants.

Mrs McRitchie and friends raised over £300 for Cancerbackup.

Walking the South Downs Way – May 2007

A group of dedicated walkers based at the Prince of Wales pub in Hammer, near Haslemere walked the South Downs Way (106 miles) over five days between 3rd-7th May in support of Cancerbackup and The Lymphoedema Support Network.

Aiming to raise £10,000 for the two charities the team of walkers, led by Iain Harper, exceeded this ambitious target and raised a phenomenal £11,500!! Cancerbackup will receive £7,600.

Iain chose to support Cancerbackup after two battles against cancer in 2002 and 2005. Iain said, “ …I'm still here, thanks to our wonderful NHS, but in no small measure to Cancerbackup, whose advice and support were instrumental in my recovery.”

Back at the pub and still smiling! 

To read more about the Centurions’ adventures and to view their gallery of pictures, visit www.sdw.org.uk

River Danube bike ride – April 2007

On 2nd April 2007 Keith, Jim, Tom, Jack, Ash and Juan hopped on their bikes and cycled along the river Danube to Vienna, covering a distance of 294 kilometres.

At the age of 43, Keith was diagnosed with testicular cancer, which was a life changing experience. Keith, along with his son and friends, wanted to mark his recovery with this challenge and raise money for Cancerbackup. They were pleased to have surpassed their initial fundraising goal and have raised £1,640 to date.

The intrepid cyclists alongside the river Danube