73 Three days to go!

The last couple of days have seen much activity as we prepare for our evening fundraising event this Saturday.  I thought I was quite an organised person, but even with multiple lists coming out of my ears, it all feels a bit manic!


Niamh has spent this evening sorting out the raffle prizes, while I made lists for a seating plan, further stuff to buy, timings for the night, jobs still to be done and people still to contact. 

We have money in envelopes and scribbled notes on bits of paper all over the place. 

My friends and family have been an amazing support in getting the event organised and it finally feels that everything is coming together at last.  I’m so pleased that my brother and his family will be coming up to support the event and my sister is flying in from Germany …can’t wait to see them all.

Our ticket sales have exceeded expectations, which is a huge relief.  We still have a few left, so do let us know if you’d like some.  We also aim to have some on the door for any last minute guests. 

Some useful information …M

? The address for the event is Bonis Hall, Bonis Hall Lane, Prestbury, Macclesfield SK10 4EF. 

? Start time is 6.30 …we went for an early start as we thought it would suit those bringing children (please let us know if you are,  so we have a rough idea of numbers). 

? There is plenty of parking and we have been given permission for cars to remain there overnight, if you wish to get a taxi home and come back for your car the next day.  (Cars left at owners’ risk). 

? As a rough guide, the cost of an Uber from Bonis Hall to Hazel Grove is £10.

? There will be a well stocked bar selling Swan beer, lager, cider, wine, Prosecco, gin, vodka, Pimms and a range of soft drinks.

? Payment for drinks can be made by cash or card (there will be a 20p charge for each card transaction). 

? We will be serving a curry supper (vegetarian / gluten free option available too).

? Raffle tickets will be available to buy on the night. 

? We have a couple of live performers who are kindly giving their time for free (thank you so much Ashleigh, Dan and Chris).

???? I hope everyone has a great night and look forward to seeing you all there xx

69 Friends

I just wanted to send a message to friends everywhere, to apologise for being such  a rubbish friend these days!  

Although I am working slightly fewer hours these days, I still find that work takes up a lot of my time and energy (spoons!).  Whatever I have left is spent stressing over fundraising!  If the truth be known, I really don’t like the situation I find myself in and hate having to ask people for money.  It’s all so time consuming, stressful and a little humiliating.  I tend to be quite open with friends and family, but don’t share my whole life with everyone.  Yet here I am sharing my thoughts and information on my life and my health with anyone who wants to read it!  

With all my physical and emotional energy going in to fundraising, worrying about fundraising and trying to win the lottery, I know I am neglecting the people around me.  I’m sorry for that.

If I owe you a text or phone call or an email, or a coffee or a night out, I hope you can bear with me while I’m so distracted with everything else.  Please keep in touch xx

All of this has made me realise that life is going to be very different for me for the next 6 months or so.  I’m planning to work hard at the fundraising until our evening do on 23rd February.  At that point, I’ll try to borrow whatever is outstanding and get my treatment paid for.  Then I’ll have 2 months to plan and prepare! 

My trip to Russia will take a month and I’ll need to take things very slowly when I get back.  I’m hoping normal service will resume by Autumn …that really does sound a long way away.  I know I will have some wobbles on this journey and there’s a lot I can’t even think about yet, but at the moment, I’m feeling positive and determined, which will do for now! 

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Event tickets £10 each

Saturday 23rd February  … Bonis Hall, Prestbury

Raffle tickets 50p each 

GoFundMe

68 Tickets, ticket, tickets!

The tickets for our fundraising event are finally ready! 

I’d like to thank Dave Gilmore for designing and printing them and Niamh for cutting and perforating them. 

Tickets are £10 each, children under 10 are free (please let us know if you are planning to bring children so we have an idea of numbers).

The evening will start at 6.30pm and will go on until midnight.  We have a few live music acts lined up – dancing and singing along most welcome!  There will be a bar, selling Swan Brewery beer and various other refreshments. 

We have a few items that we plan to auction – this will begin online in a couple of weeks and end during the evening (more info to follow).

Raffle tickets are also now for sale.

We have had lots of amazing raffle prizes donated, with new items coming in all the time.  Raffle tickets are 50p each.

A small selection of raffle prizes


If you have anything you could donate or know of any shops or services who may be willing to provide a voucher, we’d love to receive them …the more prizes we have, the more raffle tickets we’ll sell and the closer we’ll get to our fundraising target. 

All business donors will be mentioned in this blog, on our social media pages and on the night.

If you would like to see more of Dave’s fabulous work (including the Manchester bee paper straw design) please see his website …

davegilmoredesign.com

You can find out more about Swan Brewery here …

swanbrewery.co.uk

If you would like to make a donation to our fundraising account, please do so here …

GoFundMe

Please spread the word!

Thank you again for all your support ?

65 Let people in; they can handle it

I read this interesting personal account today and realised I have the same issue as Trish – I am so determined to remain independent and self sufficient that I tend to hide my MS struggles and don’t often ask for help.  

MS Lesson Learned: ‘Let People In; They Can Handle It’

Yesterday I met up with three dear friends who I’ve known for years and would trust with my life – we can (and do) talk about anything and everything, we’ve supported each other through all sorts of ups and downs, over many years, yet still I minimise my struggles.

Thinking about this, I realise it’s because I don’t want the people in my life to see me differently …even though I am different now.  Maybe I am struggling to accept that myself? 

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I am very happy to tell you that we finally have a plan in place for our evening fundraising event on Saturday 23rd February.  Tickets are being designed and printed as we speak and will be available to buy very soon.  Tickets are £10 and will be available soon. 

Bonis Hall

As mentioned before, the venue is Bonis Hall, the home of McCann Manchester, who have kindly agreed to let us use their Bistro area for our event.  Special thanks to Joe for setting this up for us.  

The event will start at 6.30pm and we have an evening of music, food, drink and fun planned.  Children are welcome too (please let us know if you are bringing children).  

We are hoping this will be a successful fundraiser for us and a fun night for all.

We will be selling raffle tickets before and on the night and already have a fantastic array of prizes.  If you have anything you could donate as a prize, please do get in touch.  Unwanted Christmas presents, vouchers for services or anything else you can think of! 

We still have some other fundraising events coming up …Callum’s head and chin shave, Team Stephenson’s are taking part in the Gung Ho Infaltable 5K, Glenda will be taking part in a Nordic walking event and the lads will be completing their Mountain Bike Challenge

GoFundMe