Hello all

This summer we are part of a fantastic team that will be tackling an ‘Ultra Challenge’ to walk 50km in just one day on sections of the South West coast path in North Devon and Exmoor.

We hope you will take a minute to sponsor us so we can raise some money for a wonderful charity called Exeter Leukaemia Fund (ELF). We will also be chanting your motivational messages when the ‘going gets tough’ – every time we get to a hill!

Training for this challenge, has made us step away from our devices and get off the sofa. Lenny is having so many long dog walks, involving steep hills and valleys, that he is baffled and often found snoozing. Doing several practise walks, with members of the team, has made us realise that 50km is really far to walk in one go. There will also be over 1,600 metres of climbing along the route – that can’t be right, can it?

As well walking further than ever before and raising much needed funds for ELF, we are also helping our good friend to celebrate a significant milestone. It is now 21 years since Andy was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia and had months of chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment. Fortunately, he then received a lifesaving bone marrow transplant from an anonymous donor – who we all know as ‘Frank’. Every year on the 19th February we raise a glass to ‘Frank’ in appreciation of his important donation. We became friends with Andy in 2009 and have spent many a happy days and evenings with him since then, ranging from intense games of Scrabble to dancing around at ‘fake’ Fleetwood Mac gigs.

When volunteering at ELF events, we met some lovely people. Many of them have benefitted in some way from ELF’s support and services at, such as transport, counselling, therapy treatments and financial grants. The charity also funds essential equipment for the ward, and provides Fellowships for NHS staff to engage in training and research in the area of haematology.

Please do donate whatever you can (every little really does help) to support ‘Frank’s Big 21’ and to enable ELF to continue their great work.

Thank You!

Hannah & Gareth