Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

So what's it all about then?  Well, some of you may be aware that it was my 60th birthday recently - I know, I've kept it pretty low key, but the message may have got out!!  Anyway, before I slip into senility and spend my salad days dressed in a nice onesie, slumped on a couch and watching Countdown and Bargain Hunt every afternoon, I wanted to try and tick a few more items off of the 'Kilby Bucket List'!!

Now, one of the items on that list is the subject of this fund-raiser. Over a couple of weeks at the back end of April next year,  myself and a few like-minded idiots are intending to complete Wainwright's famous Coast to Coast Walk. A 200 mile trek across the northern part of England, from St. Bees in Cumbria on the Irish Sea coast, to Robin Hood's Bay in North Yorkshire, on the North Sea coast.

The route, famously designed by Alfred Wainwright as recently as 1973, passes through some of the most beautiful countryside in the UK including 3 National Parks, namely the Lake District, the Yorkshire Dales and the North Yorks Moors. But, at an average of around 14 miles a day, every day, for two weeks, over some fairly challenging terrain, this won't be any 'Walk in the Park', so to speak. Especially for a man of my advanced years!!

But, that's enough of me wittering on about the challenge, what about the charity, I hear you say?  Well, as it happens, I'm very glad you asked me about that.  When I decided to do the walk, I knew that I wanted to make it really worthwhile, by trying to raise some money for a worthy cause. I also knew that I didn't want to raise funds for one of the big charities, very worthy as they are. I wanted to try and make a really meaningful contribution, by supporting a smaller, but equally important charity.  And the one I have chosen is LITTLE HEARTS MATTER - see www.lhm.org.uk for more details.

I regret to say that I only found out about LHM very recently having never been aware of it before.   One of my daughter Emma's closest friends Fiona Pollard and her husband James were overjoyed when they found they were expecting their first baby.  However, at the routine 20 week scan, they were devasted to learn that their unborn child had a rare, very serious AND incurable congenital heart defect called Double Inlet Left Ventricle, effectively half a working heart.  Only about 5 in every 100,000 babies are born with this condition.  To allow a good quality of life, they were advised that their baby would need numerous heart operations before school age.

Lucia Grace Pollard (see pictures) was born on 22nd April 2013 and is doing remarkably well.  She has had her first bout of surgery and will be undergoing further major operations over the next few months.  As you can see from the photos Lucia is a beautiful baby and I think that the two pictures perfectly showcase the contrast between the sweet innocence of this lovely little girl and the seriousness of her condition.

James and Fiona have been wonderfully supported by LHM, being the only UK charity which supports families with children with a single ventricle condition.   They both felt very alone and frightened following diagnosis and LHM have been there from day one.  There is always someone on the end of the phone to help with any questions or simply to offer reassurance.  The charity has put them in touch with other families in the same situation and the families all support each other, particularly when going through surgery.

With a relatively modest annual income, donations from fund-raising are of critical importance to Little Hearts Matter and I am delighted to be supporting this wonderful charity on my walk. I hope that I can encourage lots of donors to dig deep for this super charity.

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