In 2008 myself and Jon West started down a road that has lead us further than we could ever have expected all in the name of a charity very close to our hearts, over the years both our lives have been heavily affected by Cancer, in 2002, Jon lost his mother and in 2012 he lost his father both to this terrible disease. 

Due to the affect this has had on Jon and the people close to him I have become strongly involved in raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support. Macmillan are a great charity that offered Jons family support and assistance during those difficult times.

Jons father, Peter, raised over £10,000 for Macmillan and now because of the events we have organised we are close to matching his total while carrying on his tireless work and helping his name live on. In 2008 Jon, Rik, Ricardo and myself  completed a sponsored trip visiting all 92 football league clubs (plus Wembley and the Millennium Stadium) in 7 days, stopping overnight in a tent and collecting football memorabilia from the generous clubs willing to donate while en route. We then held an evening auctioning offthe memorabilia and managed to raise £2,500 in donations. In October 2015, Jon and his wife Becky raised over £500 by asking for donations to Macmillan instead of wedding gifts. 

In May 2016 we held the first Peter West Memorial Trophy at Eastwood Community Football Club, which included a football match between a team of ex Butlins employees (Jon and myself worked there together) and a team made up of friends and family, aptly named 'The Rest Of The World'. Throughout the day we held various tombola’s, stalls and games to raise funds and after the match we held a large raffle and charity auction of football and sporting memorabilia, including signed shirts/photos and match day tickets, the day was a huge success and raised more than we could have dreamed of, all of which went to Macmillan.

The rematch was held last year and the Peter West Memorial Trophy 2017 just like the previous event had a massive amount of support and raised a similar total to the 2016 game.

This brings us to this year’s event, where we once again hope to raise a good total all of which will go to Macmillan Cancer Support. 

Fundraising is hugely important to Macmillan. Without people doing events, running marathons, climbing mountains, and donating in all the other ways that you can, Macmillan wouldn’t exist.Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs.

Much love x