“If you’re doing something for someone else, it’s far greater than doing something for yourself” Continued

I managed to complete the MNDA 75-mile dog walk this week; during October I walked with nine dogs for 21 and a half hours. All were very good company, all had different personalities and some liked chasing squirrels, however none of them caught one.

In no particular order, thank you to Cleo, Rufus, Teddy, Bella, Monkey, Woody, Lucy, Huey and Luna.

In completing the challenge, I achieved some of the goals that I had set myself when I committed to the fundraising, these included. ?

1.????? Raise money for the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association …. Trying to help their mission succeed and contribute

From the 60 miles running (in August) and the 75 miles dog walking (in October), nearly ￡300 has been donated. Thanks to everyone that has donated, through the MNDA, this will pay for a MND expert researcher for two days, to help better understand the disease.

2.????? To experience the ‘monthly run’ and ‘monthly dog walk’ approach to fundraising

I have been thinking about fundraising since the early 2000’s and have done a few types since running a half marathon for the British Heart Foundation. I wanted to experience what it feels like to fundraise in this way ‘doing something within the period of a month’. Having done it, my main reflection is that its important for the something to be an activity that I wouldn’t naturally do, which presents some difficulty.

At some point in my career, I would like to work / lead in the charity sector. With this in mind I am continuing to build a variety of experiences in fundraising, board governance through my trustee role at Boccia England and a project that I am consulting on.

3.????? Catch up with friends from the world of sport ?

I met up with a couple of friends from the sports sector; Will Evans and Dave Hembrough .

Will and his dog Woody walked with me around Attenborough Nature Reserve in Nottingham, I heard about the Brewers 10K (& 5K) 2023 and other work that he is involved with at the Burton Albion Community Trust. The trust offer a wide range of programmes to inspire, engage and educate their local and surrounding communities.

Dave, his greyhound Monkey (pictured) and I walked around Damflask Reservoir in Sheffield to talk about Mettle and sport for development. Mettle are ‘a community of lifters, of people, for change’ who believe that through (weight) lifting, they can build healthier, happier and stronger communities. Following the walk and conversation, Dave and I agreed to travel to Leeds for the ‘Moving Forwards’ event, hosted by Yorkshire Sport Foundation, StreetGames UK and Sported.

To continue supporting the MND community in 2024 my intention is to

1.????? Listen and share the ‘Seven’ podcast which has recently been launched by Lindsey and Rob Burrow to explore how sporting greats deal with adversity and how they celebrate the good at every opportunity. Its from BBC Radio Leeds, Motor Neurone Disease Association, Speak Unique, and Think Smart Box.

2.????? Some of the people who have kindly donated or commented have said that their life has been affected by MND, I will connect with them and would like to hear their story.

3.????? One of the lines in the Kevin Sinfield book talks about rugby leagues potential development over the next ten years and the concerns about concussion and contact sport. I would like to learn more about the subject so that I can act accordingly.

4.????? Finally, I will have another go at the MND Associations August and October challenges, hopefully along with some friends.

#TeamMND #MND

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