Stroke Awareness Day Thank you!
09 July 2009
A huge thank you to everyone who took part in this year’s Stroke Awareness Day and especially our Step up for Stroke walking challenge. Step up for Stroke was again very successful. Over 1300 people took part (more than double last year’s numbers) and so far we have raised over £20,000 - with money still arriving every day. The event proved a popular challenge for many stroke survivors, including Ken who before his stroke in 2001 enjoyed mountain climbing and is now an avid walker. Ken walked from Feok to Portreath along the coastal path – a total of 14 miles in just under three hours! Jill in Trelogan had a stroke in 2006 and a hip replacement in 2008 but challenged herself to walk with two friends for three-quarters of an hour through the Pet Cemetery in Holywell. And Dave in Cranham, Essex managed a total of 600 steps during the day – his stroke happened 18 months ago and he has just started walking again with assistance. In Hampshire, a group of occupational therapy and nursing staff also took on the challenge, walking 15 miles (50,000 steps each!) between two hospital sites, Emsworth and Petersfield. They were rewarded with a party in the stroke ward on their return and even did a radio interview about their six hour walk. Other activities on Stroke Awareness Day included stroke information stands and blood pressure testing around the UK. Some of these events were run by Stroke Association staff, some by GP surgeries, health centres and hospitals, and others were organised by stroke clubs, including an expat group in Spain. There were also fundraising collections in supermarkets, shopping malls and railway stations, and a number of fundraising events such as skydives. In total this activity raised another £12,000. We also gained a lot of media coverage, especially via an article in Yours magazine – in total reaching over 2 million people in circulation figures. If you live in either Portsmouth or Sefton, you might have noticed some advertising of the FAST (Face, Arm, Speech, Time to call 999) campaign message around Stroke Awareness Day. This was funded by the PCTs and City Councils in those areas. In addition, the South East Coast Ambulance Service launched six ambulances with the FAST message on them to coincide with Stroke Awareness Day. All in all, it was a very successful day with vital funds raised to help The Stroke Association fight the UK’s third biggest killer and the leading cause of severe disability. We look forward to having you all on board for next year. Thank you again for your support!
Source: The Stroke Association
