Jo Jones set herself the challenge of walking for at least two miles a day throughout March, but just a few days in she decided to make the challenge even harder by cycling the distance as well.
This fundraiser is the latest in a long line of events Jo has organised to thank the charity for supporting her with a ‘Home from Home’ 13 years ago when her son was in hospital. Harry, who was ten at the time, was rushed to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge to have surgery on a suspected brain tumour, however during the operation it was discovered it was in fact a blood clot. Following surgery, Harry had a long recovery and needed to relearn how to walk and talk due to his major operation. Throughout this time Jo and her husband Ben could always be by Harry’s side as they were given a place to stay at The Sick Children’s Trust’s ‘Home from Home’ Acorn House. Located just a few minutes’ walk away from the hospital they could both be with Harry whenever he needed them, rather than travelling the 45 minutes from their home. Jo said:
“We received such marvellous care from the staff at Acorn House and we were so incredibly grateful to have a place to stay close to Harry. We were in complete shock at the time with so much going on and without the ‘Home from Home’ only one of us would have been able to stay at the hospital. My daughter, Taila, was able to stay at Acorn House so we could stay together as a family as much as possible and she could see how Harry was getting on which really made a difference to us all.
“We have hosted previous fundraisers for The Sick Children’s Trust and I decided to set myself a physical challenge this time to complete during lockdown to raise more money for this brilliant charity. I’ve never done anything like it before and unfortunately I did injure my back which has postponed my completion date. However I am determined to finish the challenge by 12 April and with £530 raised so far there is nothing that will hold me back.”
2020 was a challenging year for the charity which relies solely on the generosity of its supporters to run its ten ‘Homes from Home’ across the country, making fundraisers like Jo’s so important. Abi Abdel-aal, Acorn House Manager, said:
“Jo and her family have been amazing, long-term supporters of ours and we can’t thank them enough for all of their fundraising efforts. Jo is a superstar for completing this tough challenge!
“We would like to thank Jo for choosing to do this challenge for us now, her support will help us continue to support more families.”
More details about Jo’s fundraising can be found on her Facebook fundraising page https://www.facebook.com/donate/842642189618416/
