14 August 2024
Our summer season is well underway both on and off the water! We’ve spread the word at festivals and so many people have taken up challenges, hosted events and got involved with the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust – all while raising money towards inspiring brighter futures for young people living through and beyond cancer.
From physical feats to festival fun, we want to say a massive thank you to everyone who has played a role in making a difference by building support this month. If you feel motivated to do the same or already have your own personal targets, read our fundraising pages for advice and information on all the ways we can help you achieve your goal. Here are some of their excellent efforts…
Physical feats
Family affair: On 13 July, Phil completed the Race to the Stones, a 100km challenge across Britain’s oldest path, the Ridgeway, raising over £2,000 for the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust. His niece, Emilia, continues to be supported by the charity, having been diagnosed with leukaemia when she was five.
Ahead of his massive challenge, Phil said: “I’m 52 and not as fit as I was when I last did it six or seven years ago. But compared to what those battling childhood cancer and the impact it has on their longer-term future have to go through, it will be a walk in the park, albeit a long one with blisters no doubt.”
Thanks to Rentokil Initial Matched Giving, his employer will also match £500 of his funds, further adding to his impressive total.
To add to the running success, our Events and Partnerships Coordinator, Jade, along with Hayley and Crispin all took part in the Saucony London 10k on 14 July. All three smashed their individual fundraising targets, raising a total of £1,450
Community support
In the community: Throughout July, Ryde Town Club on the Isle of Wight organised a series of quiz nights, which generated £1,000 for the charity.
On 3 July, Ella cut her hair for the Little Princess Trust and Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, helping to raise £698 for the two charities. We are incredibly thankful for all the donations that help to inspire brighter futures for young people living through and beyond cancer
Festival fun
Our incredible volunteers had a sunny weekend at the Barrow-in-Furness Tall Ships Regatta on 10-11 August. We raised over £800 while spreading the word of the charity and meeting a lot of Ellen MacArthur supporters.
Volunteer Louise from Barrow-in-Furness represented the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust at the event. She was supported by the charity after being treated for a medulloblastoma, a type of brain tumour, when she was younger. She now volunteers with the charity, supporting young people who were in the position she was once in.
Louise said: “I have been with the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust since 2008, when I experienced my first time sailing as a young person recovering from cancer. It was amazing, I’ll never forget it. It was so good to be with other young people who felt and understood the same things as me.
“I joined them again a couple of years later, then went on to become a volunteer. Since then, I have volunteered on trips that keep the feeling of family, support, and belonging alive, and hope that I can support other young people to have the same positive experiences I had, in a situation where positivity is lacking.
“I still personally get so much from the charity and the trips, and I want to be able to provide the young people we support with that same feeling of family and belonging. A skipper from the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust even attended my wedding in November, because that’s the kind of lasting friendships and sense of family that the charity provides.”
Despite the rain and stormy weather at Camp Bestival this year, our team and volunteers powered through the bad weather to meet festival goers, play games, sell merchandise and raise money for the charity.
Looking forward...
The celebrations for CarFest are beginning early! In June, James Blunt hosted a concert for charity, Gig in the Garden, with the main beneficiary being his Blue Marine Foundation. It was decided that after costs and the donation to his charity would be split between the CarFest charity partners. With over £1 million raised, the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust has been donated £73,082! We're looking forward to CarFest at the end of August and hope to see you there!
Feel inspired? Be part of something special! Sign up for one of our events here!
It's amazing to see so many innovative and exciting fundraising ideas, we can't wait to see what happens next!