I would like to tell you about a special little girl. What made her special you may ask? Well, she taught a future queen how to ‘say’ please and thank you and even taught Santa Claus how to ‘say’ Happy Christmas!

The girl is our daughter, and 13 years ago, at just 26 months old, she was diagnosed with a brain tumour. It was devastating and at the time of diagnosis she was given only two weeks to live. But thanks to some talented surgeons, professional support and dedicated care from my wife and I, she stayed with us for nearly 2 more years. Despite the horrendous treatments she had to undergo, and the physical challenges she subsequently had, we did some amazing things with her during this time and got to find out so much about her character. 

Losing her has been painful and grief is a constant companion. I started running after she died not only to help with both physical and mental wellbeing but also to manage my grief. It has been a way to channel positivity from utter tragedy.

When Lorna was diagnosed, once we had got through the acute treatment phase (including multiple surgeries, her cardiac arrest, her losing her ability to speak and eat) and after my wife and I had learnt to look after her many complications; we met the paediatric oncologist to discuss cancer treatments. It was so hard to hear that these educated and dedicated professionals had so few tools to combat something so tragic. Her chances of survival beyond five years were less than 10%! There have to be better methods and approaches waiting to be discovered and I am determined to play whatever part I can to realise this. That’s why I want to fundraise to try and bring further positivity.

I have set myself the challenge of running five half marathons this year (!) to raise funds for Blue Skye Thinking. We met the Hall family on Kamrans Ward at The Oxford Children’s Hospital in 2013 and saw first hand not only what Lorna and Skye endured but also that of the other families on the ward with us. 

Lorna is with me every step on my running journey and it is my way of trying to ensure that her short life still has meaning. She was so determined and strong and before she lost the ability to speak she was a great communicator. After her surgeries the three of us learnt sign language so she could still ‘have a voice’. It was through signing that she was able to do the things I mentioned at the start. 

Lorna can still be a positive influence for the world and ultimately I think that is what all parents want for their children.

Thank you for reading this and taking the time to get to know more about Lorna and I hope my running challenge will inspire you to donate and support the work that Blue Skye Thinking are doing. Click here

It was a pleasure to come and talk to some of you about how we can all play our small part in supporting Brain Tumour Research. You were all very enthusiastic and great listeners so I look forward to hearing all about your fundraising events and return to talk about exactly how this money will be spent.

A huge thank you to some of the Pupils at Headington Preparatory School. You were delightful to meet and are clearly focused on wanting to help others. Thank you for all your fundraising efforts.

The lovely Binning family held a special fundraising event in their garden to help the shortfall suffered by many charities unable to volunteer in the ‘feel good’ charity tent at this years cancelled Truck Festival.

“We had a very productive weekend in the garden with a band, bar and bbq and split the profit three ways between Blue Skye Thinking, Steventon Church and Batemans.” Georgia Binning

Nomads Vets are a charity focused Rugby Team and are proud to support two amazing causes by raising funds and awareness through playing in tournaments, hosting charity days and taking on other activities. Our first chance to represent Blue Skye Thinking and Special Effect was at The Bournemouth Rugby Festival on August Bank Holiday weekend which we only went and won! We are following this up by entering The Dubai International Vets Tens in December. In between that we have matches against other charity teams and a number of The Nomads will be jumping on bicycles not always designed for the average size of Rugby Player to take part in the London to Brighton Bike Ride in September!

All donations massively appreciated and will be split equally between the two charities.

Their support is ongoing with a high profile trip to Dubai later in the year. The club always welcome new sponsors if you have a business you wish to promote. You can also donate to the Charity through the team page here

Support for the Nomads means more support for us too!

The Dragon Christmas Charity Sale is a major annual event and a great Dragon School tradition. It takes place at the end of the Christmas term and is one of the most entertaining and eagerly anticipated days in the Dragon calendar. Each year more than 400 parents, staff and children get involved in making the Sale happen, and as well as being a lot of fun the Sale raises funds that are distributed to more than 75 charities locally, around the UK and abroad. We were lucky enough to be one of those lucky charities.

Goring & Streatley Golf Club, situated on the Oxfordshire Berkshire border, was founded in 1895 and, unlike a lot of golf clubs ladies have had a presence since its inception. One of the honours as Ladies Captain is being able to nominate a charity for my year. In 2020 I chose Blue Skye Thinking and although the opportunities to fund raise were few and far between I was delighted to be able to make a donation. During the first lockdown one lady spent time everyday walking round her garden and was sponsored to do so. (Thanks to her understanding husband who had to purchase grass seed!) Another lady made face masks, not only for members of the Club but also for the local community. As I am staying on for a second year, the fundraising will continue.
Gill Athey – Ladies Captain 2020-2022

Amelie, Kate, Louise, Lily, Jenifer, Chloe, Maddie & Emily from Didcot Girls’ School all made the finals of First Give. A personal development project to help build a culture of giving, First Give allows pupils to choose a chosen Charity, learn more about them, organise and hold a fundraising event and then present their finding at school. The winning team are awarded £1000 for their chosen charity. Among very steep competition, Amelie, Kate and Louise were successful in winning this year’s competition and we are so very grateful.

Thanks also to Head of Personal Development at the school, Stuart George

Thanks to the generosity of our community school. We are delighted to thank you all for the contributions made at the 2 performances of 'The Sleepy Shepherd'. The £224.20 raised, will be put to great use.

Brewin Dolphin is a UK FTSE 250 provider of discretionary wealth management. With £45.0* billion in total funds, it offers award-winning personalised wealth management services that meet the varied needs of our clients including individuals, charities and corporates.

It gives clients security and wellbeing by helping them to protect and grow their wealth, in order to enrich their lives by achieving their goals and aspirations. Its services range from bespoke, discretionary investment management to retirement planning and tax-efficient investing. Its focus on discretionary investment management has led to significant growth in client funds and it now manages £40.1* billion on a discretionary basis. Its intermediary business manages over £13.8* billion of assets for over 1,700 advice firms either on a discretionary basis or via its Managed Portfolio Service.

*As at 30th September 2019 through Brewin Dolphin’s Small Grant’s Programme, which has been running since 2013 and allows employees to apply for a grant for a charity that they are personally involved with, the company donated £1,000 to Blue Skye Thinking.

The school grounds were transformed into a silver paradise to celebrate their 25th Anniversary and held a magnificent Silver Ball, hosted by BBC personality Charlie Ross. A Whopping £25,410 was raised and will have a significant impact on funding a UK lead, international, paediatric brain tumour research project. Details to follow in 2020.

Year 6 pupils raised £304 over the summer walking ‘ Walk a mile in my shoes’. Very big thank you to you for coming up with outdoor activities!