Future Events

Dr Patricia Pilling from Penny's Hill Practice in Ferndown is set to race across the Pacific Ocean raising funds for the John Thornton Young Achievers Foundation. Pat will sail from Quingdao in China to San Francisco, a distance of 5,680 miles! She is taking part in leg five of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race and will be competing against 9 other yachts. They will leave China on 2nd March and expect to arrive in San Francisco sometime between 1st and 5th of April. This is the challenge of a lifetime for Pat and the only opportunity for people from all walks of life to compete in a round the world yacht race.

Life as a member of the crew will revolve around a four-hour watch system. Pat will take her turn below deck with cooking and cleaning duties as well as on deck, helming and trimming the sails, as her team strive to win the Clipper Trophy. As a member of the Clipper crew Pat will work in every position. The experience is total.

The crew will need to be chefs, plumbers, electricians, tacticians, navigators, cleaners, IT specialists, bakers, sail repairers, quartermasters, weather forecasters, engineers and medics. Each crew needs to be a self-sufficient unit capable of taking care of every situation - no matter what the conditions. There is no Yellow Pages in the middle of the ocean. If something needs doing, they've got to do it.

If you would like to follow Pat on her journey visit www.clipperroundtheworld.com

Donations for this amazing challenge can be made at :- www.justgiving.com/Patricia-Pilling

Bon voyage Pat!

In May 2010 Pete Sunnucks and Matt Snook are climbing Mount Everest. Reaching the highest point on earth will fulfill personal lifetime dreams. But more importantly it provides a unique opportunity to raise awareness and funds for two charities they are deeply passionate about - Help for Heroes and the John Thornton Young Achievers Foundation. The Everest summit expedition will tackle the North Ridge of the mountain and is professionally led by Adventure Peaks, a mountaineering company based in Ambleside, Cumbria.

Mount Everest has been successfully summited by just over 200 British climbers, 85 successfully completing the widely accepted harder route of the North Ridge. They are under no illusion of the severity and hardship that awaits them. In the years since Everest was first summited, 212 people have died on the mountain. Whatever your age there is a 1 in 12 chance of not coming back.

In preparation, they have spent months building up experience, climbing in the Alps, English Lakes and the Scottish Highlands. Further to this they will tackle the Southern hemisphere’s highest peak, Mount Aconcagua, Argentina in January 2010. They have also planned additional endurance events to act as more training and fund raising opportunities for the main event, which you can keep up to date with in their “Blog” on their website.

John and Matt were very close friends, growing up together with the same aspirations and dreams in their hometown of Ferndown. We can only begin to imagine the impact the tragic death of his best friend has had on Matt. But it’s the greatest testament to his character how he’s continued to live his dream just as John would have wanted him to do. For Matt, climbing Everest is more than just a personal dream; it’s something he and John both shared. They swore to each other that one-day they would stand on top of the world together.

It was through the Junior Leaders Course that Pete met John, and they forged a strong friendship. John’s death hit Pete hard. With so many of his other close friends preparing to go, recently returned from or currently serving out in Afghanistan, it is no surprise how much the two charities mean to him and how driven he is to raise as much as he possibly can for their cause.

Picture: Matt and Pete.

To find out more visit www.everestforheroes.co.uk

If you would like to sponsor Pete and Matt www.justgiving.co.uk/everestforheroes

Chloe Harries and Abby Hills, wives of Royal Marines from 40 Commando in Taunton, came across an idea to organise a weekend away for wives and girlfriends of serving British personnel. Their first weekend was such a success that they organised another. This also proved to be a hit! So they have now decided to set up as a company and offer these weekends tri-service.

The weekends are aimed at bringing together people who share a common bond with a partner who serves for his Queen and country. They encourage wifes, girlfriends and mums to try things they wouldn't normally do and make new friends.

Their next event is in May and the venue will be Bournemouth. They will be Going Ape at Moors Valley, having a relaxing Spa at The Queens Hotel and then off to Jaggers Comedy Club for the evening. Chloe has kindly suggested that any money raised during this weekend will be donated to the JTYAF.

Picture: Wives and Girlfriends supporting Forces Family Events

40 Commando will be returning to Afghanistan in April and our thoughts and prayers will obviously be with the lads but also with the families that they leave behind. Forces Family Events will make a real difference to the wifes, girlfriends and mums as they will be an invaluable support for one another while their men are in theatre.

Please contact Chloe at forcesfamilyevents-chloe@hotmail.co.uk for more information

Richard Millman, JTYAF Ambassador for the North, is taking his running up a gear in 2010. In October 2008 Richard completed the Great North Run in less than 2 hours and he now plans to run in the Edinburgh Marathon on the 23rd May.

Richard is raising funds for the John Thornton Young Achievers Foundation, alongside which he plans to raise money for Help for Heroes. Two great causes! Best wishes go to Richard for a successful day on 23rd May and good luck with the training.

On Wednesday 26th May Janet Latham from Hope FM Radio will be having her first experience of skydiving with the famous Red Devils. Janet is also an immensely popular swimming teacher at Ferndown Leisure Centre and teaches diving as part of the Swim Academy programme. She will certainly be a 'fish out of water' when she heads out of the aircraft accelerating from 0 - 120mph in 10 seconds at 13,000ft!

Janet will be diving at the Netheravon Airfield in Wiltshire and is using the skydive as a fundraiser for the JTYAF. Many thanks to Janet from all at the trustees of the JTYAF, we very much appreciate your courage in taking on this challenge and choosing John's Foundation as your charity

Picture: Janet Latham Hope FM
If you would like to do a skydive for the JTYAF please contact us at enquires@jtyaf.org
We are aiming to organise a JTYAF Skydive in the Summer.

Martin Mansbridge and Lee McCumiskey are organising a charity bike ride to be held on 12th/13th June 2010. They are looking for expressions of interest from individuals who would like to take part, either as riders or support staff. The event will raise money for 3 charities; The Firefighters Charity, Help 4 Hero's www.helpforheroes.org.uk/ and The John Thornton Young Achievers Foundation www.jtyaf.org/index.html

The Challenge This will be for a core of riders to visit all 26 fire stations in Dorset in 24hrs. This is an approximate distance of 220 miles. On 12th June the riders will be setting off from Christchurch fire station and heading off into the sunset, cycling as far south as Portland, as far west as Lyme Regis and as far north as Gillingham, before finishing at Ferndown Fire Station on Sunday 13th.

Core Riders The plan is to split the riders into 2 teams who will complete alternate legs. Once a team completes a leg it will be transferred to the start of the next leg by van and minibus, using this method each team will complete approximately 110 miles.

Guest Riders They will also welcome as many guest riders as possible to join the main riders on which ever leg or legs they choose. Increasing the numbers will increase exposure and help fund raising.

Elite Riders A small group of riders, including Lee, have expressed a wish to complete the full distance. If you wish to join them please contact us at enquiries@jtyaf.org

Support Staff This event will be impossible without volunteers to act as support staff. They will need drivers for the vans/minibuses. They will also need volunteers at each staging point/fire station to help supply water and feeding to the riders and carry out some local fund-raising. Support staff will be vital to the success of this event. Support is being coordinated by Faris Mani (Ferndown Day Crew)

Primera cycles have agreed to provide technical support on the day, as well as replacement parts at cost price and free labour. Abacus van hire and Sainsbury's are also helping, but they are looking for more sponsors, so if you know of a company that would like to get involved please get in touch with us.

There will be an entry fee of £15.00, all of which will be going to 3 charities. Sponsorship forms will also be available should you wish to use them. Cycling jerseys and t-shirts are being printed for the event and will be available for a small fee.

A dedicated website will be set up shortly at www.dorsetfirebikeride.co.uk Entry and sponsorship forms will be available to download. Entry forms will need to be completed by all riders and forwarded to Martin Mansbridge together with the entry fee and donation. The site will also have information on the route and links to the three Just Giving website pages for the charities, please encourage your friends and relatives to support this fantastic event by donating on:

www.justgiving.com/dorsetfirebikeride-jtyaf
www.justgiving.com/dorsetfirebikeride-ffc
www.justgiving.com/dorsetfirebikeride-h4h