June Blog
June was a great fundraising month with brilliant efforts made by the SUDEP Action fundraisers.
Amy Giles completed an 80 mile walk in memory of her Cousin, Catherine Davenport. She was joined on different days by family members and friends. Amy informed us “It was a lovely way of celebrating Catherine's life and has raised awareness of SUDEP amongst friends and staff at my university, and amongst my parents' work colleagues.”
The picture (left) is of Amy at the end point of her 5 day journey (from left to right: Marion Giles, Judy Davenport, Amy Giles).
In memory of Ed Vergette "TeamEd" (Carole, Charlotte, Ann Marie, Imogen, Chessie and Rachel) completed the London Colour Run. They told us “It was a wonderful day and we were all so happy to be supporting such a brilliant charity,”
Graeme Aitken ran the Glasgow Bellahouston Park 10k in memory of his family member, Steven Stewart. The picture is of Graeme after the race posing with his medal!
Ceri Robinson and Lucetta Crosskill took on a 2 mile 90 minute swimming challenge. Two miles is 128 lengths of their local pool. Ceri completed 135 in total as she was promised extra sponsorship for any extra lengths she did in her 90 minutes. This challenge was in memory of Ceri's sister Nikey. Lucetta’s daughter, Rosie, cheered her mum on as she swam.
Teams with names ranging from Weakest Link to Give Us a Clue got together to take part in a quiz organised by Sandie Scrivens and Nikki Alderslade to raise money for SUDEP Action in memory of Becky Scrivens. Sandie informed us that it was “a great night all round with Roger Scrivens keeping everyone in order as quiz master.” The quiz was one of several fundraising events Sandie and Nikki are holding to raise sponsorship for their Thames Path Challenge 50k walk in September.
Helen Lewis jumped from a plane in memory of her best friend Dianne. “The day before my first sky dive in Headcorn Aerodrome (28th June) we finally got the results of the coroner's report citing Sudden Death in Epilepsy as the cause of death. My beautiful best friend and sister in law, Dianne Fitzpatrck, died in February leaving behind a devoted husband, Molly Mai (4), Olwyn (2), baby Peggy and lots of friends and family. She was only 33 and we miss her every day. I'm scared stiff of the idea of falling from a height so the sky dive was a challenge but I loved every minute of it. My friends and family supported me through donations and watching me on the day.”
Donna Roberts and Bexleyheath Academy hosted a music concert in memory of Donna's daughter Jamie-Leigh. Donna shared with us:
“Jamie-Leigh was a bubbly teenager who attended Bexleyheath Academy. In May of last year Jamie was preparing for her GCSE’s, looking forward to Prom and her Sweet 16th birthday party. Tragically Jamie didn’t make it to these events. On the 5th of June 2013 she passed away suddenly in a devastating accident caused by an untimely epileptic seizure. One year on we wanted to help others, we decided to raise money and awareness by holding a music concert in honor of Jamie. We raised more money than we anticipated and it has been a great experience and very rewarding."
Ian Thorn and Sophie Risner ran the Hackney Half Marathon in memory of Ian’s University friend Christopher Neesham who died of SUDEP at the age of 31 in January 2014. Sophie told us: “Running the Hackney Half Marathon seemed a great way to honour the memory of Chris who was a keen footballer and Sports fan. On one of the hottest days of the year we managed to finish an incredibly gruelling Half Marathon, looping around the Olympic village without any shade for the last 4 miles was the biggest challenge but it was the memory of Chris which kept us pushing forward. Ian managed the Half Marathon in the not too shoddy time of 2 hours 19, whilst Sophie came in at 2 hours 45. It was an emotional day and through the pain and sweat I’m sure Chris would have loved to see Ian not only running his first ever Half Marathon but would have laughed at Ian’s sweat band. Raising money and awareness for this cause is so important so we can try to avoid losing such wonderful and close friends such as Chris in the future.”
From left to right -Ted, Eoin, Kirstyn, James, Dave and Max took part in a Wolf Run in memory of Lloyd Short. Julie Wilson, Lloyd’s mum explained “The event is staggered throughout the whole day - everyone has different start times which meant there were no crowds - There was plenty of entertainment - bouncy castles, food stalls, live bands and a live screen for spectators to watch! Our runners set off about 10.30 - the first 10 feet and they had to cross a river what a start! Then off they went for 10k of mud, obstacles, woodland and more lakes! They ran, climbed, jumped, waded, crawled and swam!! It was a brilliant team effort they all helped and egged each other on and a wonderful time was had by one and all!”
Susan McGeachie (57) swam the river Clyde from Cloch View Greenock to the West Bay Dunoon in memory of Garry Lathan, Jane McPhee and Laura Osborne. A ferry takes 25 minutes and Susan managed in 53 minutes! Susan also made cakes for a cake sale on the day of her swim and her daughter, Joanne Loughlin, sold SUDEP Action merchandise.
LUUMHC hosted a Mixed Hockey Festival day in memory of Emily Sumaria.
Mixed teams of all abilities competed in a 7 a-side round robin followed by a cup and plate competition. It cost £10 per person to be involved in the event, this included a beer/glass of wine and a burger/hot dog.
Lastly, Grandmother and Friends of Dean Crosby walked the Flora Mini Marathon in Dublin. Donagh Crosby, Dean’s mother, reported that “the day was filled with a lot of laughter and tears remembering a lovely little soul who died from SUDEP."
Thank you and well done to all the June fundraisers. If you took part in a fundraising event in June and would like to be included in the June blog then it is not too late! email [email protected] providing details of your fundraising activities.
If you have been inspired to fundraise for SUDEP Action please let us know what you are planning on doing or if you would like any advice call Katie on 01235 772850 or email [email protected].
Rachel and Katie
Most of our fundraisers are fundraising on behalf of a family member or friend who has died. As we celebrate the success of our fundraisers, we keep in our thoughts their loved one who is no longer with us.
