We reproduce below a letter received from the Rainbows Hospice for children and young people
I would like to invite you to join us for this year’s Walk of Life – 20th Birthday Celebration! The walk this year is on Sunday 29 June and starts at our new venueWatermead Country Park in Syston. We have changed the venue and the route so the shorter routes, of one and three miles, are around the very beautiful Watermead Country Park and are suitable for wheelchairs and pushchairs. The 10 mile route will meander down the Grand Union Canal, around the equally beautiful Abbey Park and back again, please see overleaf for details.
To complement the lovely new walks we will have traditional funfair rides and family fun entertainment at Watermead. Each child will be given an activity pack to keep them entertained and all participants will receive a medal when they complete their walk, so come and join us, bring a picnic and make a day of it!
This is a birthday celebration so there will be party hats and balloons galore to celebrate our 20th Birthday, and we want everyone to join in. If you would like to dress up for the day the theme is “Colours of the Rainbow” so be as bright and creative as you can (This is optional!).
Over the last 20 years, we have helped hundreds of East Midlands’ children, young people and their families, through the toughest days of their lives. With your help we can be there for even more terminally ill children, young people and their families in the future.
Right now we are caring for 288 children and young people, that’s more than ever before. In addition we are supporting 249 bereaved families and 521 siblings. Also, through our outreach efforts into East Midlands’ paediatric oncology units, we are caring for a growing number of our region’s children with cancer. But we want to do more and that’s where you come in.
We want this year’s Walk of Life to be our best ever! Our target for our 20th Birthday year is to raise an extra £100,000, which will help us fund more children’s nurses. Book your place and help the terminally ill and life-limited children in our care.
Enclosed you will find a registration form – please copy the form and help spread the word by encouraging friends, family or colleagues to join you. If you would like a poster to display in a prominent place please call 0800 952 1133 to request one. To register (£5 for adults and £3 for children 14 years or younger) please complete the enclosed form and send it to the address below with a cheque made payable to Rainbows Hospice. You can also register online at http://www.rainbows.co.uk/walkoflife or call 0800 952 1133 to register over the phone.
Kind Regard
Victoria Brunt
Events Co-ordinator