Judd Street walks

Walk 1

Today’s walk around our local area was enjoyed by 18 people raising a wonderful £73 for Stuff4Sam! Thankfully the weather was kind and we were only interrupted once by a small army of children trooping past!

Julianne wowed us with facts about our local area including where the Skinners Arms gets its name, background about some of the blue / brown / grey plaques and statues and famous local residents (including the not-so-famous Anna’s brother). We found new places to eat and learnt about opportunities for getting culture at lunchtime from music, dance and art.

Walk 2

It was a busy work day so just ten people made it to the walk on Tuesday.  However, a good time was had by all. For some, the high points were finding new places to get a sandwich, others enjoyed exploring their local area for the first time.  Julianne wowed the group with facts about local residents including Kenneth Williams (and his dad’s hairdressers round the corner), Reginald Hill who caused upset by modernising the postal system meaning that people had to have holes cut into their front doors (the scandal!), and the activities of WB Yates and his new bed.  

Total thanks

Thanks once again to all who joined the walks raising a grand total of £122!

Extra special thanks go to Julianne for coming up with the idea and doing such a sterling job of bringing the history of the area to such entertaining life.

Walk for Sam

It’s summer and time for another new fundraising effort. Our good friend Julianne has recently qualified as a Blue Badge Guide and has kindly offered to lead a lunchtime walk around our local area. We’re promised unusual spaces and facts about famous residents and historical events.

At £4 per person and a maximum number of 20 places we’re anticipating a substantial rise in the Sam coffers. Four places have been booked already and we only advertised it last night! We’ll publish photos and a review of the walk after the big day – Thursday 19 June.

Fran and Ruth’s run

 

We ran the Whitstable 10k on May 7th to raise money for Stuff4Sam. As well as sporting “Hi Sam” cards on our backs we also had signs for “Helen’s Hen Run”. Helen from our running club is getting married soon (poor thing was forced to wear a veil and tiara all the way round!). 

After such a lovely April we were disappointed in the weather – it was raining on and off and very very windy but our families and friends still insisted on having a beach barbie so they could cheer us on.

The first 5k wasn’t too bad but as soon as we turned onto the sea front at Herne Bay we were faced with a wall of wind! It was a struggle getting back to Whitstable and there were a few times that we felt like packing it in but there were plenty of people supporting us and that gave us a great boost.

Our target time was to get in under an hour – the first 5k we did in 28 mins, well on target but the wind slowed us down and we had to do a mad sprint finish to the end – almost on our knees we fell over the line in 59 mins and 54 seconds (lots of time to spare!).

We then made our way back down the beach for a much needed and deserved glass of bubbly and the rain held off just long enough for us to enjoy the party.

We think we’ve raised about £450 between us which is fantastic – thanks to all those who sponsored us and came to support us on the day

Fran and Ruth xxx

Run, Fran and Ruth, run!

It’s Fran and Ruth’s Whitestable 10k run this weekend. Best of luck to them. Hope the weather holds!

Whitstable run4sam

Great news – Fran and Ruth McSweeney will be running the Whitstable 10k race (that’s 6.1 miles!) on 7th May to raise money for Sam! Here is a message from them:

“We’re currently training hard, pounding the streets of Canterbury and Whitstable 3-4 times a week. It’s not too difficult to get out of bed  when the sun’s out. Its especially lovely to run by the sea. When it’s cold, it’s REALLY cold with a biting wind off the north sea. Please think of us on those cold, rainy nights!

“Raising money for Sam is really giving us the motivation we need, especially as we know that every penny will be going directly to him.

“So far we have raised £65 in sponsorship and counting! You can sponsor us by making a donation via PayPal or send a cheque made payable to stuff4sam to PO Box 54662, London, N16 8YG. You can also contact us via stuff4sam@gmail.com”

Watch this space for training news and details of the event!

Arlo’s sponsored walk

Hi Sam!

I did my sponsored walk on Sunday. I walked along the river in Kendal, and then along the old canal path. It was a bright, sunny and chilly day. I saw lots of dogs going for walks and smiled at all the girls I walked past. I also found lots of gravel to play with and took my Daddy on a detour over the grass (he thinks the reins are to keep me under control!). I walked 3/4 of a mile and by the end I was so tired that I sat down on the path and didn’t want to move anymore.

 Lots of love from Arlo xxx

We did it!

What a fab day! 20,000 women and us, all running and walking 5k to raise an incredible £21 million for charity. We did it for Sam and so far we have raised £423 with promises of more to come.

Jane: Though the day began grey and damp, when we all lined up at the start the sun came out and everyone cheered. Off we went with smiles on our faces, “toodly-pippin'” along, looking out for the 1km, 2km, 3km markers. I had my poor feet rolled over by a buggy and was trampled on by many feet! I was attacked by helium balloons including inflated eye balls and was closely followed by Postman Pat! With the finish line in sight and the crowds cheering it was a wonderful feeling of triumph. WE DID IT! Thank you to everyone who supported us and our fundraising for Sam.

Debbie: Well the training paid off! We did it!! As Jane said, it was glorious and the park was perfect after a couple of weeks of rain. Very lush and very green! Our goal was one hour but with some bottlenecks on the bends, we managed 65 minutes. Crossing the line hand-in-hand we were really happy to know that we had done something that will really help Sam. Thank you so much for all your kind support and messages and a special big thanks to Ann for coming to meet us afterwards with a lovely bottle of fizz!

Arlo and friends’ baby walk

Another sponsored run / walk event to help support Sam: 

Hello, my name is Arlo and I am 15 months old. My friends and I have just learnt to walk and we are going to be doing a sponsored walk along the river in Kendal to raise money for Sam at the end of September (date dependent on weather!). Here I am in training, on a very rainy walk with my Daddy!

A new running recruit

25 days to go and I am really looking forward to my 5k challenge! Luckily I have an extra support in the guise of my good friend Jane who has signed up to do the run / walk with me to raise money for Sam! Not sure if she knows what she has let herself in for!

Training so far has included several evening gym sessions and lots of swimming. Jane is planning on trips with the Blind Ramblers Association over the next few weekends. These are adventures out of London into the countryside and will no doubt prepare her for the wilds of the Serpentine. Hmm, maybe not!

So far we have raised around £150. Our target is £500 so if you haven’t supported us already, please do so at Just Giving. The money goes direct to the Bristol Children’s Hospital so that the right equipment can be bought for Sam. 

Thanks! Debbie

Day one: train for 5k run

On Sunday it was exactly six weeks to go to the Hydro and I thought I ought to do something about training. I dug out my trainers, headed down to my local gym and decided it was time to go contract! I have been doing “pay as you go” which meant when I didn’t have the readies, I didn’t go. So this time – NO MORE excuses!

I signed up for the six-week special summer offer and now am now on a monthly contract. It’s a good thing I like my gym – Fusion in East Dulwich (great staff and a lovely swimming pool but don’t tell everyone) – as I am going to be spending a lot more time there from now on.

On Monday I had my first gym session and it was bloomin’ hot on that exercise bike. I cycled for 20 minutes and then did lots of weight things before going for a lovely swim. Bliss!

Debbie