As many of you may know I recently lost my lovely dad, John Porter, to cancer. He had just celebrated his 70^th birthday before Christmas and was in the gym 5 times a week and incredibly fit and seemingly healthy when he suddenly became ill and was subsequently  diagnosed with terminal Cancer of the Kidney and Lung. He died 8 short weeks later. Those 8 weeks in which he battled with his illness were incredibly fraught for us all. Many days were spent in hospital which was a really stressful environment for both him and us. .

When it became clear that there was nothing more the hospital could do for him, he was thankfully moved to St Margaret’s Hospice in Yeovil for his final days, which I know comforted him greatly knowing he was nearing the end of his fight.

It was reassuring for him to go somewhere that he already knew and it was the second best thing to bringing him home.  He had been a volunteer helper there  since it opened some 13 years previously and knew the environment and the staff  and how the hospice provided excellent care and facilities for their patients and families.  As soon as he moved there a sense of calm replaced what had previously been an incredibly stressful, traumatic  and  chaotic period. I had never previously been to the hospice and I was astounded by the level of care the hospice and its staff provided, at all times in a warm  and caring way. My Mum and I were given our own room right next door to Dad so that we could spend every precious minute with him until he passed away.  This was a source of great comfort for my Dad as well as for me, my Mum and the  rest of his family and friends. The staff at the hospice take as much care of  the relatives as they do the patients. They knew when we needed to talk, when  we didn’t and when we needed a hug and when we wanted to be left alone. The staff there are simply incredible with all the patients and relatives.   I’m  sure all hospices try and provide this kind of care but I think St Margaret’s Hospice is very special indeed.

The hospice relies heavily on donations and  fundraising  in order to operate and maintain this level of service and care as only about a quarter of their funds  are provided by the NHS  and it for this
reason that I am about to do something mad.  I am running the London marathon next April to raise money for the hospice in memory of my Dad. Whilst I might be an occasional runner, 5K is my max. I am not looking forward to the shin  splints and blisters that the 42Km will that produce!  I have never run a marathon before and I never will again. This will be one of the hardest things that I have ever done, but it will not be as hard as watching my dad die and I will be thinking about him for every mile that I run. I miss him every day but I know he’ll be helping me from afar although I will need to start the  gruelling training plan too!   The amount of training is in itself, overwhelming and by the end of April, I’ll happily let you call me “ Forrest “.

I want St Margaret’s Hospice to continue to offer a safe, caring and dignified space, with the highest degree of medical care to patients in their final days, and to provide a little bit of comfort to their families and friends too. They try to make the worst of times a little more bearable so please, if you can, no matter how small a contribution, help me to support a fantastic cause and think of me when I am pounding the streets in the dark and rain.

I’ll keep you updated on my progress but I promise not to overload you with details of my toenails falling off!