UKBA Olympians with ACLT co-founder Beverley De-Gale

When it comes to having dedicated, loyal and upbeat fundraisers the ACLT have such individuals in abundance. Introducing the UKBA Olympians (UK Border Agency Olympians), this strong team of 20 have been raising money for us since they became involved with the Gold Challenge initiative last year (Read our previous post on Gold Challenge here).

This weekend on Saturday 18 February the energetic crew decided to further their challenge and fundraising by taking part in a 5k run taking place in Croydon’s Lloyd Park.

Below we have a special report from one of the members of the team:

“The team gathered just before 9am, and were boosted by Beverley’s arrival to cheer us on.  The pre-race photo was taken.  We started the parkrun a little after 9am.  The weather was dry if a little chilly, and the course was a bit muddy making it a little challenging in parts.  80 people lined up to start the run and with a quick “on your marks, get set, go”, we were off.  The course is two laps of the park.

 First lap, everyone settled into their pace and the field was quickly quite spread out.  The UKBA Olympians stayed towards the back of the field, wondering what on earth we’d let ourselves in for.  After the first half a kilometre, we navigated a short steep slope, leading to a slight down hill section.  A chance to try and get our breath back after (probably) setting off a little too quickly.  The course took us around the edge of a field and we could see an uphill section approaching, at about the 1km point.  Turned the corner, up the hill, and it went on for longer than we wanted it to.  Some of us managed to run up it, but others used it as a chance to walk and get their breath back, again.  Then it was a nice sloping down hill nearly all the way back to the start-finish line, the half-way point (2.5km).  So that was lap one done – now to do it all again.  And this time we knew what was coming.  And this time we knew it would hurt more.  Our legs were aching from running on the muddy ground, and our lungs were burning.  But we kept going.  This was our Gold Challenge event and no one said it was going to be easy.  Cheered on by our small team of supporters, we tackled lap two.

 The overall race winner completed the course in 18:39.  We did it in a slightly slower time, with our finish times ranging between 30:14 and 45:22.  Heather was the first UKBA Olympian home (51^st overall), with John Muir (55^th) not far behind.  Next home was Kate (60^th), followed a minute later by Mark (66^th), who saved enough energy for a sprint finish.  30 seconds later was Tony (69^th).  Jenny (73^rd) crossed the finish line raising her arms in celebration, and Kathryn was the next UKBA Olympian home (77^th).  Tracy (79^th) and Jill (80^th) crossed the line together, supported by Tony.

 We all looked suitably tired, but happy, by the end, as shown by the post-race photo.

Those of us who enjoy running, will probably do another parkrun.  Those of us who don’t, are just glad that they can say they have run 5km and we’ve ticked off another sport for our Gold Challenge, as we continue to raise funds for the ACLT!”

The above race report brings such a smile to us in the ACLT offices; we TRULY appreciate the dedication the UKBA Olympians team have shown us!  It’s indviduals like those mentioned above who make it possible for the ACLT to continue to work and save lives.  If you’re yet to pledge your support, you can do so now by donating to the fundraising page of UKBA Olympians. Please show your support! Donate here!

To read more on the wonderful UKBA Olympians, please read their team story on the Gold Challenge website here

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Zumba is a Latin-inspired dance fitness workout that uses vibrant salsa, merengue, cumbia, reggaeton, samba and calypso moves, with energising Latin and international music. Zumba is suitable for all and it’s exercise in disguise.

The ACLT are hosting our annual Zumbathon at Crystal Palace National Sports Arena, Ledrington Road, London SE19 2BB on Sunday 29^th April 2012 from 2pm till 4pm.  Entry fees are: Adults £15, Children (Under 16) £10.

All money raised will go directly towards projects and activities to increase the numbers of underrepresented minority ethnic groups on the UK bone marrow, blood and organ donor registers.

Various Zumba instructors will lead the fitness party on the day including: Pier Johnson, Angela Oliveira, Carolyn Allen, Jade King, Jenny Brister, Leeann Lok, Michelle Savage and Samantha Markey.

If you have never experienced Zumba before then this is the party to be at!!!

For registration forms and further information please email info@aclt.org or call the ACLT office on 020 8240 4480.

January 1^st 2012 notes not only the turn of the year, but also marks the day our co-founder , Orin Cadogan-Lewis, is awarded with an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the Queen’s New Year’s 2012 Honours List by the Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary in recognition For services to Healthcare. CAN WE GET A WHOOP! WHOOP!

#TeamACLT are incredibly proud of Orin and Beverley for both achieving such an accolade in 1  year. I hope each of you have joined in on our Facebook and Twitter pages to say congratulations!!

A few words from Orin:

“I am deeply touched and ever so proud of being awarded this honour by Her Majesty the Queen for my services to Healthcare in Britain. I feel extremely honoured, and accept it on behalf of my children, family, and everyone associated with the life saving work of the ACLT. Having recruited tens of thousands of new bone marrow, blood and organ donors from the hardest to reach communities and in turn directly saving lives in the UK and abroad, it does fill me with joy that our efforts have this year been recognised to the extent that first Beverley, [in October 2011 Beverley De-Gale was awarded an O.B.E. for services to Healthcare) and now I, have been awarded this prestigious honour from Her Majesty the Queen.

“There is still much more to be done. Earlier this year we held a major recruitment drive in central London’s Leicester Square, in response to the need of 3 year old Kye Carpenter-Mark for life-saving bone marrow donors. I know from my own experience that there is no starker illustration of the ongoing importance and invaluable nature of the ACLT’s work than the loss of a loved one. Sadly Kye recently lost his battle with leukaemia, tragically passing away late November 2011. Our drive and motivation, is to enable children like Kye to overcome this terrible illness and to enjoy life with their families and friends”.

We salute you Mr Orin Cadogan – Lewis OBE.

Click here to listen to a BBC London Radio interview with Orin.

Bring on 2012!

Orin proudly holding his certificate

Very happy to announce that our co-founder and Chief Executive, Orin Lewis won a gong for the category of  “Highly Commended” Community Champion Award at the Croydon Champion 2011 Awards last night.

Croydon’s Champions were honoured at an awards ceremony to recognise the borough’s unsung heroes at the Hilton hotel in Croydon for the Croydon Guardian’s tenth annual awards ceremony which aims to honour the bravery, selflessness and commitment of the people of  Croydon.

However it doesn’t stop there… another ACLT family member – 4 year old Neveah Green who suffers from Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) and who we currently support to find a life saving match bone marrow donor, also picked up the an award for “Child of Courage” which whilst we’re clearly biased, she soooooo deserves!

Neveah is presented with her certificate

Well done to Orin and Neveah – you’re both an inspiration to many.

L-R Michelle Duncan and Sarah Thompson

Can we get a whoop, whoop around here please?

This month celebrates 5 years since one of our most dearest volunteers Sarah Thompson received her bone marrow transplant from an UNRELATED donor! This is something massive to celebrate don’t you think!  Rather than us talking about her journey, read about her story in her own words here, written in January 2008…

“My name is Sarah Thompson & I have been married to Mark since March 2005.  In May 2004, I was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia & had four courses of chemotherapy which successfully put me in remission.  I was soon well enough to get married & return to work & I enjoyed thirteen months of remission.  Unfortunately, however, in December 2005 I was told after a routine blood test that my cancer had returned.

 This time I needed a bone marrow transplant.  As a mixed race person I was well aware of the difficulty in finding a match. I was soon told that my only sibling, Laura, was not a match for me.  I was in a terrifying state of limbo.  My doctors were able to get me back into remission with more chemo but I knew that without a match I could relapse again at any time.

 We were already aware of the ACLT as I had tried to join the register for Daniel De Gale many years before.  Bev & Orin were currently campaigning for both DJ Swing & Lynden David Hall at this time & we had met them at a benefit concert only weeks before I relapsed.  So Mark decided to contact this amazingly selfless couple & ask for their support in finding me my match.

 With the ACLT’s support we went public with my appeal.  This was a scary prospect for me as I’m a very private person.  My first appearance was live on GMTV with Mark & Orin. It was the day after I was discharged from hospital following my treatment.  I was so nervous but it went really well & most importantly the response from the public was amazing!  Bev & Orin received many calls & emails from people wanting to join the register & this encouraged me to continue with our media appeal.  We have done lots more television & radio since then & I’ve been featured in many magazines & newspapers, including ‘Cosmopolitan!’ 

 The ACLT ran several drives & over a 1000 people joined the register during this period.  It was at one of these drives that I was able to give Bev & Orin the fantastic news that my doctors had found me a match!  We don’t yet know where my donor comes from but I hope to meet them one day & thank them for the’ gift of life’ they have given me.

 I owe so much to Bev & Orin & all their dedicated volunteers & my family & I now regularly volunteer at the bone marrow drives too.  The ACLT were an invaluable resource for me & my family & helped us immensely through our potentially harrowing ordeal.  I would urge anybody to support this charity by joining the register & or offering a financial contribution to this life saving trust.”

Sarah Thompson

On July 23rd Sarah met her life saving match, a mixed race woman called Michelle Duncan and as you can see in the picture above, they celebrated their incredible bond, brought together by a medical process and a large dose of sheer good luck! Love it. Congratulations to you both.

Thinking about getting fit? How about doing so whilst raising money for us by signing up to be part of Gold Challenge?

Gold Challenge is a charity challenge where you take on Olympic Sports and Paralympic Sports to raise money for a charity of your choice (us!)  Everyone aged 7 upwards can take part in Gold Challenge as an individual or as part of a team.  Participants choose from the challenges available and fundraise money for one of Gold Challenge’s 125 charities.

They offer several corporate challenges, which can be great for corporate team building,, fundraising event ideas or if you simply want to change things up in your life and do something different and exciting!

You can make it as challenging or gentle as you like; choose from Olympic and Paralympic sports such as Olympic Distance Triathlon, 5K run, Swimming, Badminton, Tennis, Wheelchair Basketball – the list is endless!

There are three great challenges to choose from depending on whether you want to learn new sports, push yourself over 2012 km or complete your Gold Challenge in a day:

Olympic Sport Challenge
2012 km Challenge
Gold Challenge In A Gym

INTERESTED? THREE EASY STEPS TO MAKE IT HAPPEN… Choose your challenge, select your charity (us of course!) and then register by visiting Gold Challenge then start getting fit!!

Let us know how you get on by leaving comments under this post and future Gold Challenge blog posts.

Special shout out to the following organisations/events and individuals … Inspirational Awards for Women, Amicus Horizon, Broken Silence Talent Show, Deborah McNally,  Metropolitan Black Police Association, Dynamic Eclipse Arts, Harlesden Methodist Church, Lambeth College, Parkview Secondary School, Biddenham Upper School Bedford, Kent Minority Ethnic Police Association with Medway African Caribbean Association, Mark & Sarah Thompson, Back 2 Life club night, Heroes club night, Kings College ACS, Skills Funding Agency and PCS Trade Union, Manchester, A2 Dominion Housing Association,  Eleshah Minto and Tribute concert to life of Cherry Groce and last but defo not least… Her Majesty the Queen – THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.

A new clothing donation scheme has been successfully trialled in the Centrale shopping centre in Croydon (close to the ACLT HQ). Hundreds of generous folk have donated clothing that they no longer need and/or wear, depositing them in two ‘donation bins’ within the centre. Quite simply – clothes = charitable cash! The proceeds raised are donated to help fund the ACLT charity’s vital work in raising awareness of blood, organ and bone marrow donations.

To see an article in the local newspaper Croydon Guardian, click here.

Following the success of the trial will keep you posted as to when the scheme returns permanently (scheduled to be in the new year).

As well as his ongoing efforts to raise awareness of the ACLT and its goals, Tony has recently directly fund-raised a sum of over £1,000. How? On Friday October 14th he dared to step into the ring to participate in the White Collar Boxing Tournament as part of ‘The Real Fight Club’ held at Kensington Town Hall. Months of training, not to mention a considerable amount of blood, sweat and tears helped him achieve not only an honorable draw in the bout, but become our Heavyweight Fundraising Champion of October 2011!

Help him, help the ACLT, by donating at http://www.justgiving.com/tony-cox

It was a Monday like no other, (03/10/11) for Beverly and her immediate family. The subject of a special television feature on ITV1′s London Today and London Tonight news programmes, Beverley was filmed going door, (her own), to door, (the Queen’s), to capture for the viewing audience, the experience of accepting an invitation to a Royal residence to receive such an honour. If you missed it, here’s a beautiful picture of Beverley with her ‘gong’…