This will be the fifth time we’ve fundraised in memory of our wonderful friend Gina, who passed away in 2019 after a prolonged period of living with leukaemia. If that sounds like a weird way to put it, it’s because I don’t think she’d want it described as a “struggle” or a “battle” because there were so many ways in which she flourished after her diagnosis. Many of you who’ve followed our exploits in the last five years will know that Gina graduated, worked in sports and leisure, travelled, found love, and more before her passing - and while her one-of-a-kind personality is surely to thank for all that, we cannot understate how the life-prolonging stem cell transplant she received helped along the way. Without a stem cell register, people like Gina could languish on transplant lists until it’s too late. We’re just a handful of the people that felt the benefit of Gina in our lives, and I (Lats) for one wish that I could convey that to people who are unsure about signing up to the register. You could save or prolong a life, and the value of that extends far beyond that person you donate to - their families, their friends, people who already and and those who are waiting to love them; we are all grateful.

Aside from benefitting directly from the donor register, Gina supported Anthony Nolan in kind by helping with a donor drive at the University of Leicester in what became the most successful registration event at a university campus at the time. We know that it was important to her, so it’s important to us, but we know they’re best at describing what they do:

“Every day, Anthony Nolan saves the lives of people with a blood cancer or blood disorder. We do this by matching incredible individuals willing to donate their stem cells to people who desperately need a lifesaving transplant. We also carry out cutting edge scientific research, fund specialist post-transplant nurses and support patients and their families through the transplant process and beyond. We won’t stop until we save the lives of everyone who needs a stem cell transplant. Every penny you donate brings us closer to that day.”

We totally understand it’s not always easy to find money to spare for these kinds of things, so please, if nothing else, please consider signing up (or encouraging the young people in your life to sign up - you have to be under 30!) to the stem cell donor register. Forget about the myths of how painful it is - if you’re found to be a match, you can choose whether to undergo surgery OR a process similar to donating platelets for which NO surgery is required. And not to play the emotional manipulation card, but you’d be mildly inconvenienced to save the life of someone literally living with leukaemia, so… find more information about that here: https://webforms.anthonynolan.org/donor-application/step1

If you’re still not convinced, you can read more about Gina’s life post-diagnosis on her blog. It’s charming, informative, and honest, and hopefully hearing her voice will give you some insight on why she was so special to us. https://whenlifegivesyouleukaemia.wordpress.com/

In the past we’ve also raised money for the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, who supported Gina and other young people with cancer. If you’d prefer, you can also donate to them here: https://www.ellenmacarthurcancertrust.org/donate/

Please consider giving, and do reach out with any other questions!

Oh yeah and if it wasn’t clear we’re gonna try and do the Three Peaks Challenge in 24hrs ✌️