On Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th September, Team Edina will be cycling over 170 miles in aid of two very important charities; the MS Society and Mind Manchester.
The MS Society (Multiple Sclerosis Society of Great Britain) and Mind Manchester are two charities that are close to Edina and those undertaking this arduously long and vertical bicycle route.
The MS Society understand what life is like living with, and living with those who suffer from MS, they understand the highs and the lows and everything in between. They offer support to those who suffer and their families, they research, they write, they campaign and they fight with the ultimate end goal of stopping MS.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a condition that affects the brain and spinal cord. In MS, the coating that protects the nerves (myelin) is damaged, causing a range of symptoms which disrupts messages travelling along nerve fibres.
MS is particularly close to Edina as one of our colleagues, fellow fundraiser and most of all friend, suffers with MS and we have all seen first-hand what this means – therefore the more we can raise for such a good cause, the better.
Mind is a charity which specialises in the support of anyone who suffers with any form of mental ill health. Their mission is to provide support and advice to empower anyone who is experiencing a mental health problem and they campaign to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding.
Tragically, Edina lost a colleague and dear friend to mental ill health with devastating consequences and understands the importance Mind Manchester provides in support of those suffering with mental ill health.
If we can raise enough money to support just one person in need, then our efforts will have not gone unnoticed.
The cycle, starting at Glannaventa Roman Bath House, Ravenglass in Cumbria and finishing at Arbeia Roman Fort in South Shields, Newcastle; spans an ambitious 174 miles and covers an altitude over 800ft.
This years’ cyclists include 15 staff from all parts of the business to include; Allan Keefe, Andy Hierons, Andy Slavin, Christian Frain, Christine Ennis, Dan Clark, Darren Cowley, Dean Cooper, Edina CEO Hugh Richmond, Kelvin Arkwright, Martin Bailey, Pete Water, Scott Beddow, Associate Director Service Steve Nullis and Will Power.
The cyclists will be supported by drivers; Allan Fitzpatrick, Donna Turner, Gavin Sharples, Associate Director Projects Lee Twiby and Steve Downs.
If you could give anything at all, no matter how big or small to either of these two fantastic causes and help Team Edina achieve a target of £5,000 – it would be massively appreciated.
If you would like to donate, please do so at the official Team Edina fundraising page: https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/teamedinac2c.
It’s important to remember – we all need a distraction from real life from time to time and finding a fun hobby that absorbs your attention can make a real difference. If you’d like to get involved and raise awareness of these fantastic charities and support Team Edina, please share your images and videos, and tweet using the hashtags #TeamEdina #mentalhealth #mind with the link http://bit.ly/TeamEdina to our fundraising page.
Thank you all, and wish us luck!