Bike Some Noise for Heart Scotland
Global's 'Make Some Noise' Charity Day is being held on Thursday October 9th.
As part of this amazing event, people from around our network of radio stations will be cycling from Lands End to John O Groats on 'static' cycles to help raise money for disadvantaged children and young people across the UK and here in Scotland
Our 'Local Champion' who will be cycling for us on the day is John Young who will be raising money for The Children's Hospice Association Scotland.
Which Charity do I represent?
I represent The Children’s Hospice Association in Scotland (‘CHAS’) and The Teapot Trust. CHAS is a charity close to my heart, because the last few weeks of my daughter Verity’s life was spent in their care and without CHAS I don’t know how we would have coped - both during the care period and the bereavement afterwards. www.chas.org.uk
Verity died of cancer aged 8, after several years of suffering from Lupus. After Verity’s death my wife and I set up a charity Called The Teapot Trust which supplies art therapy to chronically ill children in hospital in Scotland, CHAS in Kinross and soon Great Ormond Street Hospital London. www.teapot-trust.org
Why should CHAS deserve your support?
CHAS is the only charity that provides hospice services in Scotland for children and young people who have life-shortening conditions for which there is no known cure. Both the children and their families receive support from CHAS during palliative care. I know from my own experience that their work is crucial to the children and families during such painful times.
The Teapot Trust is dedicated to providing professional art therapy in a medical environment to children coping with chronic illness. I know how much art improved Verity’s life whilst in hospital and we see through the work of the Teapot Trust art therapists how Art Therapy helps children come to terms with illness, symptoms, and effects of medication. www.teapot-trust.org
Random act of kindness
Here are three personal examples of kindness that have affected my life.
The first was the kindness, over and above what could reasonably be expected, shown by the staff at CHAS in Rachael House Kinross when my daughter Verity was dying. I know that Dion, Verity’s nurse, became close to Verity whilst she cared for her and bereaved when she died. It takes a big heart to cope with such losses as part of work and their kindness will never leave me.
The second was Christina, an artist, who visited Verity in hospital when she was receiving chemotherapy. Christine Gave up her time to help children and the positive benefit art had upon Verity’s quality of life and welfare was so considerable that it inspired us to set up a charity that supports art therapy. Once we examined the positive benefits of art on recovery and wellbeing it was clearly the way to go. Now we supply art therapy through the Teapot Trust to hospitals all over Scotland to CHAS and soon Great Ormond Street London - all arising from that initial act of kindness.
Before Verity died, aged 8, she campaigned for the Scottish Blood service and recruited so many new donors that she was awarded a Gold Blue Peter Badge - given posthumously. She gave up her time and her last birthday presents to this cause, because she knew that the children in her ward would not survive were it not for daily donations of blood. Anyone who does that is a hero to me.
How far can I go?
How far do you need and how long have I got? I should be able to manage 20mph
What am I looking forward to?
Going cycling whilst helping charity, what is not to like about that?