Raising Money For Jamie – The London Marathon

I mentioned several years ago on this blog that I wanted to run the marathon by the time I was 35. Well, I just turned 35 two weeks ago and in a months time I will be running the Virgin London Marathon.

It took me several years to get a ballot place and last year I was going to run but was thwarted at the last minute due to injuries and having a cold.

I did some fund raising last year for a charity that resonated with me. However I still felt like I wasn’t close enough to the cause. I really wanted to find something very personal that I could support.

This year I’m doing something very special and it’s that which I’m going to talk to you about today.

In 2005 I really wanted to start doing more with my life. I wanted to give something back, do service and make a contribution.

It was then I decided I wanted to work with disabled children or kids with learning difficulties. Before I’d even begun looking, within 2 weeks I’d had two offers come through of doing voluntary work in that capacity. I took up both and one of those was with an organisation called PACE.

PACE is a small charity that was started by a lady called Krishna who has a daughter called Kavita with Cerebral Palsy. The charity itself was created to help children like Kavita participate in adapted sports and physical activities. The kids get to play adapted forms of sport like cricket, football and even paralympic sports like Boccia.

Through the work the charity does the kids even get to do things that they wouldn’t normally get to do like water sports, bowling and even ice skating!

Since the first day I became a volunteer at PACE, I realised just how much how I took the gift of mobility for granted; it gave me the gift of appreciating the smaller things in life even more. From the beginning I’ve seen the kids grow up and develop so much confidence. Michael and Jagjit are both very talented at Boccia. There is even a young man named Alex who is following in my footsteps and trying out stand-up comedy. 😆

The other volunteers are amazing and I’ve also made some friends for life. I’d say to anyone and everyone, find a similar local charity and donate some of your time and energy. It truly is a worthwhile experience.

Raising Money For Jamie

About 8 weeks ago, I was at a session of PACE and a man named Nick brought his son Jamie, who is just 7 years old, along to one of the sessions. Jamie was just so cute, bubbly and full of life. He made friends instantly and got stuck in. I commented to Nick about how Jamie just looked so adorable zipping around in his tiny power wheelchair.

Nick and I spoke further and it was then I found out that Jamie was outgrowing his mini Ferrari (I call it that because it was red and was so nippy) and needed a new chair. I also found out that those things don’t come cheap; something like £18,000 for a new one.

I was shocked to say the least! 😯

Because of my injury last year I deferred my marathon entry to this year. I was looking for a great cause to support and when I met Jamie the pieces just fell together and I really wanted to do something for him.

I spoke to Nick and Eugenia, (Jamie’s Mother) and offered to raise money for Jamie. They were naturally delighted and this is brings me to you today!

I’ve set up a Just-Giving page and I’m asking people to donate money towards the wheelchair for Jamie. The page also just shares a little bit about Jamie and his condition. It’s a fantastic cause for a young boy is just one of the most outgoing, bubbly kids I’ve ever met.

I’ve set the target at £2000, I’m not sure I’ll get close but I’m going to do my very best.

Lastly, even if you cannot afford to donate, you can help loads by ‘liking’ the fund raising page or tweeting this page and spreading the word.

P.S. I would like to say a huge thank you to Milan and Bhumi of Swaroop Arts for their MASSIVE £500 donation and to everyone else that has contributed so far. 😀

Thank you so much Preeti for the dedicated article! 🙂

Link to fundraising page on Just-Giving