I was always a little superstitious, but after Friday the 13th June all those years ago I became more so.

50 doses of antibiotics into a three month old baby in 5 days is a massive amount of medication, but it caught the infection in time before the damage was permanent and saved my daughter's life. I will always remember what Dr Luke Clogher and his fantastic team did for us.

Watching Emma growing up with her brother over the last 19 years has been an incredibly rewarding experience, as any parent will know. It could so easily have been very different - either a life without her, or a life that could have been so different for us all had she not made a full recovery.

A family member who sadly is no longer with us used to describe how "she lights up the room when she walks in" - she is so full of life. She teaches sport to children on a voluntary basis; I see how they latch on to what she says and share her enthusiasm, and the patience that she shows some of the children who need extra help.

We are privileged to have her but not everyone is so lucky, and that is what this is all about. I want to raise money for a charity that helps to fund research into Meningitis and provide support for the people who are not as lucky as my family.  

My colleagues in the wider team and I are walking, cycling and running on a one mile circuit close to the centre of Newcastle on Thursday 15th September. We are going through the night in one hour shifts, working in pairs with back up for safety reasons. Collectively we wish to clock up 292 miles, which is the length of our team's coverage within England and also about the distance from London to Paris.

My employer will double whatever I raise. Do please donate a few pounds to this cause.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity and you can Gift Aid it make it worth more to them. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.