Story
We wanted to fundraise in memory of Drew and what would have been his 18th birthday.
Drew fought cancer with such strength and determination. He kept his humour and zest for life, always joining in anything his friends were doing. “The boys” which are what his immediate friendship circle were called, were inseparable and never for one second thought Drew wouldn’t recover. Telling them that their friend had passed away at 14yrs of age was one of the hardest things we have done as parents. His loss is felt at every milestone, GCSE’s, prom, passing driving tests, heading towards future careers, they all bring pride for our boys but sadness at Drew not being here, constant thoughts of his family and wondering at how he would have responded to certain events - his one liners were legendary!
At 10yrs of age Drew was diagnosed with leukaemia, he rang the bell at the end of his treatment but very sadly relapsed only three months later. His family and friends were heartbroken when he lost his battle in 2019 at 14yrs of age.
His memory is kept alive and stories told on a daily basis by his friends who were protective during and after his treatment.
We need changes to Children’s Cancers as we now know it isn’t rare, treatments are brutal and well outdated and support to families limited. Let’s make a difference together!
Our challenge? Walk/run/cycle/hop/skip 5k per day from 20th April until 20th May which would have been Drew’s 18th Birthday. The plan is to cover 155k in the month, appreciating we can’t always manage a set amount each day. We would love for everyone to join our challenge with a £5 donation fee xx
Children's Cancer North is dedicated to making life better for children with cancer across the North East and Cumbria. Around 100 children from across the region are newly diagnosed with cancer every year and come to the Great North Children's Hospital in Newcastle for their treatment. Children's Cancer North aims to improve their quality of life through transforming the environment and play experience on the wards, providing access to potentially life saving clinical trials and funding revolutionary research to find more effective treatments.