The staff and trustees at Harrogate Mind are walking 1932 miles next month to raise money and awareness for the importance of your mental health.

This festive challenge will see the team walk the distance from The Acorn Centre, central Harrogate, to Lapland between December 1 and December 25.

There are 15 staff members and trustees taking part, meaning each of them has to walk, run or cycle almost 130 miles in 24 days.

The charity said it hopes to promote the benefits of exercise for a person’s mental health through this fundraising campaign.

Tina Chamberlain, CEO of Mind in the Harrogate district, said everyone had worked really hard during the pandemic and even they can sometimes forget to work on their own mental health.

She said:

“We are often too busy taking calls from people to take a lunch break and the long days mean that you don’t feel like exercising when you leave work either. I noticed it was all starting to take its toll on staff.

“We came up with the idea that we would walk the 1932 miles from Harrogate to Lapland. Having this goal has really galvanised the team.”

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A Harrogate sixth form pupil has raised almost £5,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support after hosting and performing in her own virtual concert.

Niamh Boyle, 17, staged her first concert for the charity, which supported her aunt and uncle in their final days, in 2018.

That event raised £12,000 and now Niamh has generated another significant sum for Macmillan from her second concert, which was held online and included performances from current and former Ashville pupils.

Niamh editing the performances during her school holidays before broadcasting them on her Youtube channel in September.

She has far exceeded her £3,000 target.

Niamh said:

“It just goes to show that Macmillan is a charity close to so many hearts.

“I hope that we can do a live one again next time. I can’t wait to do more for this amazing charity.”

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The concert included 25 songs from musicals. Niamh performed in three solos and three duets.

Adele Burrough, fundraising manager for Macmillan, said Niamh’s efforts would help people living with cancer, adding:

“Niamh’s remarkable efforts have also made sure that cancer doesn’t become the ‘forgotten C’ during this pandemic.

“Right now, there are around 179,000 people living with cancer across Yorkshire. When coronavirus hit, thousands of vital cancer treatments and appointments were postponed or cancelled.”

Ellie Renton wants to be a marine biologist when she grows up and a new wheelchair can help her along the road to achieving that ambition.

Now, villagers in Kirkby Malzeard and the surrounding area are rallying round to make it happen.

The 10-year-old, who is a pupil at Kirkby Malzeard C of E Primary School, has just sat her eleven-plus exam and hopes to follow her older brother William to Ripon Grammar School.

Ellie is keen on sports and competes in the national league as a winger for Middlesbrough Powerchair Football Club.

She is also creative, musical, plays computer games with William and is academic, with art, science and maths among her favourite subjects.

What stands in the way of Ellie making further progress when she goes to secondary school is mobility and the need to be able to take part in lessons at the same desk level as her classmates.

Ellie sits besides the fundraising plant stall run by Pam Collins, of Kirkby in Bloom

She was diagnosed with type 2 spinal muscular atrophy when she was 18-months-old and has been reliant on having a specialist wheelchair throughout her first five years at school.

Ellie has outgrown the chair she currently uses and her parents, Yvonne and Martin, with the support of villagers in Kirkby Malzeard, their family and the wider community, are responding to an appeal for help.

Donations to the Keeping Ellie Mobile appeal, combined with a £5,300 voucher from NHS Wheelchair Services means £11,000 of the £19,000 has been raised towards the purchase of a Permobil F3 electric chair.

Mrs Renton told the Stray Ferret:

“We launched the appeal last November and would like to thank everybody that has helped us so far.

“The covid pandemic has made fundraising difficult, but we are determined to raise the £8,000 we still need as soon as possible.”

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Village support has included the sale of potted plants by Pam Collins, of Kirkby in Bloom, and a further boost came when Ellie’s grandmother, Margaret Renton, who lives in Ripon, sold valuable coins including a gold Krugerrand at auction.

Coin sale

Money from the sale of the coins will take the appeal total to £11,000, giving hope that the chair, which has an adjustable height mechanism allowing Ellie to sit at a desk or table, can be purchased well in advance of next autumn.

She is already looking ahead to university and said:

“I eventually want to study marine biology, because I am worried about the creatures in the oceans and want to be able to do something to help them.”

Further details about Ellie’s wheelchair appeal can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/f/keeping-ellie-mobile

Frank’s Fund is a Harrogate-based charity set up by the Ashton family after their son Frank died from a rare form of bone cancer last year.

Frank Ashton was a “brave, funny, kind and positive” young man who loved playing sports and going to Nando’s with friends.

He lived in Harrogate with his family and beloved dog Barney and attended St Aidan’s high school.

But in May 2016 the family’s world changed when Frank was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma. Frank went through relentless rounds of chemotherapy, all the time staying positive.

Frank’s family said he was always smiling.

By May 2017, Frank’s tumour had been removed during an eight hour operation and he had gone through 12 months of chemotherapy – he was in remission.

Only five months later, in September 2017, the cancer came back. This was just before Frank’s 13th birthday. Louise Ashton, Frank’s mum, said:

“With a cancer like this when it comes back there is no treatment, it’s like being given a life sentence. The doctors said he has two years to live, he had another seven months of chemo.”

Over the next year Frank continued to remain positive and see his friends but in January 2019 his health was failing fast and Frank died a month later, aged 14.

Frank’s Fund was set up to keep Frank’s memory alive and remind people of the positive person he was.

Louise added:

“He had a fantastic smile and we miss him massively. We set up the charity to keep Frank’s memory alive, we want him to be remembered as the funny boy he was.”

Frank’s Fund was set up to raise funds to go to dedicated cancer research. Primary bone cancer received just 0.028% of funding from major UK cancer charities in 2018/2019. The treatment and survival rates of this cancer haven’t improved in over 30 years.

To donate to the fund click here.

Louise said:

“It’s really shocking how little this cancer receives. The best way for people to fund bone cancer research is to give to a dedicated charity. I would have been really angry if I knew how little funding went into research when Frank was alive.

But now we are doing something about it with Frank’s Fund.”

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Frank’s family with Maisie Adam a charity patron (second from the left) and other comedians who performed during the charity’s comedy night last year.

The family are determined to raise as much as they can to follow Frank’s wishes to prevent children suffering as he did.

This year several of their fundraising events have been cancelled but they are continuing to fundraise with a virtual comedy night on December 11 and selling Christmas cards, follow the charity on Facebook to see updates.

Three soldiers in Ripon will take part in a 700-mile barefoot relay this weekend to raise money for a girl with a rare genetic disease.

The soldiers have been inspired by Major Chris Brannigan, who walked the distance barefoot solo in August this year.

He did so to raise funds for Hope for Hasti, a charity set up to develop a treatment for his daughter Hasti, who has Cornelia de Lange syndrome.

Major Brannigan raised £375,000 and since then others have boosted the total to £670,000 of the £1m target,

This weekend’s 700 miles, which will be completed in five-mile stages, will add to the tally.

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The three members of Ripon’s 21 Engineer Regiment stepping up to help are Sergeant Max McGoon, Corporal Lee Connolly and Private Matty Haigh, who will complete the 94th, 95th and 96th legs of the route on Sunday.

They will walk from Hessay, York to Langthorpe. Hasti’s favourite soft toy, Obama the llama, is being used as the baton by all those taking part.

Private Haigh explained why the soldiers wanted to support fellow soldier Major Brannigan.

“In January 2015 until August 2016 Major Brannigan was my boss in Catterick and Cyprus. He was a very supportive and family-orientated man.

“My fiancée Chloe and I are expecting a little girl at the end of this year. Major Brannigan has shown me that no matter what life throws at you, you always fight back and most importantly that you can do anything when it is for your children.

“I hope we can raise a massive amount of money for Hope for Hasti by doing the barefoot relay.”

To support the Ripon soldiers in their efforts, click here.

Dishforth Military Wives Choir members will take on the 98th leg of the relay.

Seven members of the Dishforth Military Wives Choir are also taking part. They will cover the 98th leg of the relay from Ripon Cathedral to North Stainley. The choir also supported Major Brannigan during his original march in August.

Choir member Sue Bell said:

“Chris said to us he would walk to the ends of the earth for his children and we thought five miles barefoot is nothing in comparison and the least we could do for all the children with rare diseases.”

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Hope for Hasti 

Major Brannigan and his wife Hengameh have been fundraising for over a year for their daughter, Hasti, who was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition, Cornelia de Lange Syndrome.

There is currently no treatment for the disease. The Hope For Hasti charity was set up this year to raise money to start the research and a clinical trial into a gene therapy treatment for CdLS.

Chris’ barefoot march raised £500,000 but their final goal is £2.5million to fund a treatment. It is hoped this relay will raise further vital funds for the charity.

Four women from the Harrogate district are cycling a total of 2,000 miles in a month to fundraise for a teenager’s life-changing surgery. 

Mia Wright, 14, who has scoliosis, which causes a severe curvature and rotation of the spine, was diagnosed when she was eight years old. She underwent surgery in Turkey in September, recovering well enough to go back to school last week. 

Susie Little, Mia’s godmother, set up a GoFundMe page last month to raise £60,000 for the spinal surgery.

Ms Little decided to take on her latest fundraising challenge of cycling 500 miles after reading about a similar fundraising initiative in The Stray Ferret.

To meet her target, Ms Little will add an extra mile to the distance each day to correspond with the date. For example, on October 1 she cycled one mile, on October 2 she cycled two miles, continuing to October 31 when she will ride 31 miles in a day. 

After hearing about her idea, friends Jude Humphrey and Emma Oates decided to get involved, shortly followed by Mia’s mother Jane. Together they’re aiming to raise £2,000 for the 2000 miles covered. 

Currently completing their miles on exercise bikes at home, the four women hope to celebrate their final day of fundraising by cycling together. 

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Speaking about what the surgery means to her, Ms Little said:

“I went to pick Jane and Mia up from the airport after the surgery. The difference in both of them was amazing, Mia could stand up straight for the first time, and she even cried last week when she put her jeans on after surgery for the first time because she was so happy.” 

Total donations for Mia’s surgery currently stand at £44,600. You can donate to Mia’s cause here. 

Two businesses in the Harrogate district are challenging themselves to get moving in order to raise money for charity. 

Harrogate firm, High Street TV, is aiming to cover 500km in two hours today. Fifty members of staff will take part- walking and running however far they can to make the total distance. 

Their ‘Keep on Moving’ challenge has raised £2,450 so far for Saint Michael’s Hospice, 163% of their original target. 

Speaking about why the company chose to do this challenge, fundraising coordinator Lisa Dallas said: 

“We haven’t been able to fundraise recently because of the current covid situation, so we needed to do something a little bit different. We had to think outside the box, because we had to do something where we wouldn’t be in a group.” 

Over the years, High Street TV have raised £41,710 for Saint Michael’s Hospice and are a member of their Guild of Patrons. 

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Staff from Yorkshire letting agent Linley & Simpson have already begun their attempt to get “Around the World in 80 Days”, which is raising money for Martin House Hospice. 

To reach their target of covering 40,075km, staff from the Harrogate, Ripon and Knaresborough branches are running, walking or cycling. A combined daily distance of 505km will have to be recorded via a smartphone tracking app in order for them to make their goal. 

Martin House, based in Boston Spa, supports families North, West and East Yorkshire. They provide palliative care to children and young people with life limiting conditions. 

Will Linley, left and Nick Simpson.

Will Linley, Linley & Simpson chief executive and co-founder, said: 

“Because Covid has denied us the opportunity of taking part in a series of planned fundraising activities for Martin House, we have now devised this challenge as our grand sponsored finale of 2020.

 “Martin house is an incredible charity, and one that we are delighted to be supporting for at least another 12 months. Over the last five years we have raised more than £100,000, and to mark our 24th year in business we have now set ourselves a £24,000 target over the next 12 months.”

To donate to the High Street TV “Keep on Moving” challenge, click here. 

The Saint Michael’s community lottery is to double its jackpot as a way of thanking players for helping it raise £200,000 a year.

Established in 2000, money raised by the lottery helps the Harrogate hospice provide care and support to families affected by terminal illness and bereavement. 

To mark the lottery’s 20th year, Saint Michael’s has launched a Big Thank You Superdraw with a prize of £2,020. Its usual weekly jackpot is £1,000.

The superdraw will be held on November 4. Current lottery members will be automatically entered but newcomers are welcome to join.

Tina Hedges, deputy chief executive of Saint Michael’s said: 

“Regular and dependable income, such as the lottery, has never been more important, and in recent times has given us the ability to innovate and adapt to help our community throughout the pandemic.

“It is therefore apt that we offer our Big Thank You Superdraw during a year when we couldn’t be more grateful for the ongoing support of our community.”

Visit the charity’s website or call 01423 878628 to take part in the lottery.

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A Harrogate teenager will attempt to complete the Yorkshire Three Peaks in December as a tribute to her grandmother, who died of sepsis.

Leah Gresty undertook the challenge, which will raise money for the UK Sepsis Trust, in honour of Elizabeth Simmonite, who died on September 29. 

Elizabeth was a former butcher and baker on Knaresborough Road, Harrogate.

Leah said:

“She always liked being with nature and going for walks, so it seemed quite fitting, and it’s something that she would have liked to do herself.” 

Leah’s grandmother, Elizabeth, enjoying the outdoors

There are about 48,000 deaths from sepsis every year in the UK. 

Early diagnosis is crucial for improving survival rates. Leah, who has so far raised more than £500, hopes her challenge will spread the message.

The tough Three Peaks challenge involves climbing Pen-y-ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough in less than 12 hours – a particularly difficult feat in the darkness of winter.

You can donate here to Leah’s JustGiving fundraising page.

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How to spot Spesis:

Sepsis, also known as blood poisoning, is a life-threatening reaction to an infection. It happens when your immune system starts to damage your body’s own tissues and organs, causing organ failure and death if not treated quickly. 

www.nhs.uk advises you to call 999 or visit A&E if an adult or older child experiences any of these symptoms: 

• Acting confused, slurred speech or not making sense. 
• Blue, pale or blotchy skin, lips or tongue.
• A rash that does not fade when you roll a glass over it.
• Difficulty breathing, breathlessness or breathing very fast.

The son of the police officer who lead the investigation in to Dennis Nilsen is running this year’s London marathon for the Harrogate Police Treatment Centre.

Simon Jay is the son of DCI Peter Jay, who is currently being portrayed by actor Danny Mays on ITV’s drama Des.

The programme, whose last episode aired last night, follows the police investigation into the London serial killer which resulted in a life sentence for six counts of murder and two of attempted murder.

Simon speaks of his father as his “hero” and says seeing him on the screen is “strange”. Peter Jay died only a few months before the ITV researchers contacted him, and since then Simon has met them to offer his father’s files and information on the case.

After suffering with his own mental ill health, Simon works within that sector and closely with the Police Treatment Centres charity.

Simon said:

“It’s very strange – he’s always been my hero so it’s nice for everyone else to see him like that – it makes me very proud.

“It took five years to research – although it’s a drama it does tell the story as it would have happened. The only difference is that he wouldn’t have been scared of anything at the crime scene, but it’s to get the drama across.

“He was a little more assertive and would always take control, when Danny says, ‘He gets away with nothing’, that was Dad all over.

“I think he’d have been quite embarrassed by the show, but he would have liked that all the officers were highlighted rather than just him. To him it was just a job.”

Simon, with his mum Linda and dad Peter three months before he passed away.

Simon is running this year’s virtual marathon in aid of the Police Treatment Centres, including its service on Harlow Moor Road in harrogate. The charity treats around 4,000 police family patients each year from across the country, offering support for physical and psychological injuries.

He added:

“I was blown away by their dedication to police officers. They are so passionate and I knew they needed more support and I wanted to help.”

To support Simon, click here.

A spokesperson for the Police Treatment Centres said:

“We are delighted that Simon is taking part in the Virtual London Marathon in aid of The Police Treatment Centres. Simon has worked alongside us for some time now to facilitate a roll-out of the Thrive mental health app for our patients.

“As a charity, we rely heavily on donations. Whilst we had to close our residential facilities during the pandemic, we lost income. Fundraisers like Simon play a key role in raising the funds we need to ensure we are there for future generations of the police family.”