This is a daunting challenge for me.  Not only will I be walking 135km across the country, I will also be away from my family for 7 days - both of these are things I’ve never done before.

This challenge means a lot to me as not only will I be walking for Rainbows in memory of William, I am also walking in memory of Lewis Sewell, a talented young actor who sadly died at Rainbows in August 2020.

I had the pleasure of getting to know Lewis’ mum Gillian, and his wider group of family and friends when they took on a walking challenge in May 2021.  Our first conversations were on Zoom and it was wonderful to be able to meet in person during the walk.  Lewis’ family have set up a fantastic charity In his memory which awards grants to young people so they are able to apply and audition for theatre schools and courses.

The money raised will be split between the two charities, which feels really special, as both charities give support to young people who really need it - in very different ways.

Gillian and I have shared stories of our boys with each other, and we have shared tears and smiles.  We are both people who step forward positively wanting to honour the memory of our boys and taking on this challenge is a special way for me to do this.

This is for you William and Lewis xxxx

In May 2021 Lewis's friends and family took part in the Walk for Lewis 18 miles for 18 years. The money raised has allowed the trust to fulfil Lewis's wishes to be able to support young people in being able to apply and audition for theatre schools and courses. As a result of the previous support and generosity, in its first year, the trust has been able to award grants to young people in the East Midlands and to set up the Lewis Sewell scholarship in partnership with the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Since this time, Rainbows has successfully launched a programme to place nurses in the regions hospitals to provide specialist holistic care to more life-limited or life-threatened children and their families. This programme has seen around 30% more neonates, children and young people referred to us. We couldn't have achieved this without the support of people like you.