Richard Williman

900 Mile Challenge - Fundraising for The Ruth Strauss Foundation

Fundraising for The Ruth Strauss Foundation
£6,800
raised of £5,000 target
In memory of Erika Williman
We provide professional emotional support to families facing the death of a parent.

Story

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

I'm raising funds for the Ruth Strauss Foundation by running or walking 10km every day for 145 days! Why 145? well that's approximately the equivalent distance (900 miles or around 1450 kms) between the 18 county cricket grounds across England and Wales if you started in Durham and ended at Lords. More on plans to build on this in 2025 to come!

I’m taking on this challenge in tribute to my wife Erika who sadly passed away in July 2022 having been diagnosed 18 months earlier with stage 4, incurable bowel cancer. Despite receiving such devastating news Erika instinctively knew that we needed to talk to our children about her diagnosis and the cancer journey that lay ahead regardless of how painful and difficult this would be. She did so as she was determined that her cancer would not define them, their future or our family and that they would continue to thrive when she was no longer able to be with us.

The bravery and selflessness she showed in doing so during this difficult time is beyond words but has been instrumental in helping the children and I prepare for and grieve her loss. In tribute to Erika and to build on her legacy we are supporting the amazing pre-bereavement work that the Ruth Strauss Foundation do in helping other families prepare their children for the very sad loss of a parent or carer.

Tragically, 41,000 children under the age of 18 are affected by the loss of a parent or carer each year in the UK. That's an average of 112 children each day who face such devastating loss.

On behalf of every young person and their family who will benefit from your donation, thank you.

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About the charity

The Foundation’s mission is to ensure families facing the death a parent from cancer are offered professional emotional support, as well as raise awareness of the need for more research in the fight against non-smoking related lung cancers.

Donation summary

Total raised
£6,799.29
+ £1,080.02 Gift Aid
Online donations
£6,299.29
Offline donations
£500.00

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