My
BRIT 2012 mile blog; sharing encounters and memories from every county of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland throughout 2012
2012
BRIT miles with a spinal cord injury; the equivalent of 310 marathon distances
in 331 days to support young people post-trauma
Thanks
to everyone for supporting me on my toughest challenge
This
month’s BRIT 2012 mile walk is December in London
Day 299 - Day 311 of the BRIT
2012 Challenge
The past 14 days have gone by so quickly and I've been absolutely manic with meetings, events and walking. As the end of the challenge approaches, it seems there is just not enough time in each day.
The past 14 days have gone by so quickly and I've been absolutely manic with meetings, events and walking. As the end of the challenge approaches, it seems there is just not enough time in each day.
The friends and supporters all
around me have been fantastic and their time, encouragement and enthusiasm is
quite simply, amazing.
Day 299 found me walking at the
Telford College of Art and Technology http://www.tcat.ac.uk/ in Shropshire. I received a
fantastic welcome from the students and staff and I enjoyed myself
tremendously. It seemed like I'd just arrived and the next moment I was done
with the challenge for the day. My thanks to everyone at Telford for making me
feel so welcome.
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| A super Day 299 of my BRIT 2012 mile walk at Telford College |
Day 299 was also BBC Children in Need Day http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008dk4b and I have been carrying a little Pudsey Bear on my walking staff for the past month.
It was super to have a hug from
Pudsey during my journey down to West Sussex.
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| With Pudsey on Children in Need day Day 299 of my BRIT 2012 mile walk |
Day 300 was a mental landmark for
me. 300 days of walking the challenge. There were times I wasn't sure I'd ever
get to this point, but meeting young people and hearing their stories and being
inspired each day by young people has kept me going, even on the days I was
walking alone or when fighting off an infection. I just remind myself that others
are struggling every day and I could get out and walk each day. Today after my
walk I had a meeting with Helen, who has gifted her time and talents to serve
as the BRIT photographer this year, Polly, a member of the BRIT Young People's
Visionary Steering Committee, Alison, Polly's mum and Deanne who are super
friends and BRIT volunteers. It was a great chance to catch up with everyone
and do some long range planning.
In the evening I attended the St
Wilfrid's Hospice http://www.stwh.co.uk/
Ball. As Patron I am a strong supporter of the work St Wilfrid's does every day
to serve the community. Many of the volunteers were recognized for years of
service. Some of the volunteers have been gifting their time for 25 years. It
was truly humbling talking to these volunteers who help people and their
families at one of the most difficult times in their lives, providing care and
support to help people die with dignity.
I finished the day with 148 miles to go.
Day 301 I walked in West Sussex. After a long time away from home, I used the rest of the day to catch up on emails and get some of the day to day work of BRIT accomplished. I finished the day with 142 miles to go.
On Day 302 I had the great pleasure of talking with Dame Stephanie Shirley, businesswoman and philanthropist. I had the most incredible talk with Dame Shirley, who shared insights and gave me wonderful advice. I so appreciated her taking time to talk with me. Then it was off to a land meeting for the BRIT Centre. I concluded the day with an evening meeting for BRIT volunteers Thalia, Trudy and Clare who are helping with planning. A busy, but great day.
I finished Day 302 with 136 miles to go.
I finished the day with 148 miles to go.
Day 301 I walked in West Sussex. After a long time away from home, I used the rest of the day to catch up on emails and get some of the day to day work of BRIT accomplished. I finished the day with 142 miles to go.
On Day 302 I had the great pleasure of talking with Dame Stephanie Shirley, businesswoman and philanthropist. I had the most incredible talk with Dame Shirley, who shared insights and gave me wonderful advice. I so appreciated her taking time to talk with me. Then it was off to a land meeting for the BRIT Centre. I concluded the day with an evening meeting for BRIT volunteers Thalia, Trudy and Clare who are helping with planning. A busy, but great day.
I finished Day 302 with 136 miles to go.
Day 303 was another busy day and
Thalia and I managed to crack a huge amount of work and strategy to make the
planning easier. I then had a strategy meeting with BRIT Trustee Darren
Whittingham from Start Judge Gill http://www.startjg.com/ It is always good to speak with
Darren as he has such a creative mind and I really appreciate the way he sees
things. I then walked and ended the day with 132 miles to go.
After the meeting it was on to
Horsham to the Millais School http://www.millais.co.uk/ where I was greeted by over 800
students, parents and staff.
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| Uplifting reception from the students staff and parents at Millais School in Horsham West Sussex |
They were enthusiastic and so very welcoming. I
was honoured to be asked to present GCSE certificates and achievement awards,
as well as certificates to students who took part in the Nijmegen march earlier
this year.
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| With the prize-winners at Millais School after presenting their awards and GCSE certificates |
I had such an enjoyable evening. My congratulations to all the recipients.
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| With the students who took part in the Nijmegen March this year after presenting their well-deserved certificates |
Day 304 found me waking up to another bladder infection, which was very painful. Of all the things I've dealt with on the challenge from bad weather to flat tires, the infections have been the absolute worst. I can go to bed at night feeling fine and wake in the morning feeling dreadful. I know this is my body's way of telling me that I am doing too much, but I am sure that the number of infections I have encountered with decrease when I finish the walk.
So off I went to Chichester
College http://www.chichester.ac.uk/
to walk with the students there. Chichester College students have been
incredibly supportive this year. Not only did they start the walk with me in
the rain on 24th January, but they have walked with me several times throughout
the challenge. Today was spent doing some filming. Even with the infection I
had a great time with the students and enjoyed my meeting at the college.
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| Being asked questions by students from Chichester College during the BRIT film-making for our student social media campaign |
My
great friend, Lt Col John Maddison came over to the cottage in the evening to
discuss the plans for London and the military support that has been offered by
the Armed Forces. John is very kindly gifting his support to coordinate all the
military planning and has taken a huge weight of my shoulders. He is a
remarkable man and been a constant support in my life for many years. I ended
the Day 126 miles to go.
Day 305 found me visiting some potential land sites that have been offered as the home of the BRIT Centre of Inspiration with Martin Lewis, Chairman of the BRIT Trustees and Peter Drummond, BRIT Advisor and Chief Executive of BDP http://www.bdp.com/ I always enjoy meeting with Martin as he is imminently practical and down to earth. I value his insight, sense of humour and support of BRIT. Martin is a trusted advisor, phenomenal trustee and a great friend.
Peter has been a supporter of
BRIT since its inception and BDP have gifted architectural design support which
amounts to approximately £600,000 of support to BRIT; a breathtakingly generous
gift. I walked during the day before and after the meetings and ended the day
with 122 miles to go.
In the evening, Andy McMillan
from Coutts and Co http://www.coutts.com/
came to the cottage for a meeting to discuss on-going support. Andy has been a
great friend and supporter of BRIT and I value his guidance and advice
immensely. It is always a pleasure to see Andy and I know his time is valuable,
so giving a precious evening of his time away from his lovely family is a very
kind gesture.
Day 306 was a day walking in West Sussex, followed by emails, planning and resting to try and get rid of the infection. Busy day, but good as I got a lot of work done. I finished the Day with 116 miles to go.
Day 306 was a day walking in West Sussex, followed by emails, planning and resting to try and get rid of the infection. Busy day, but good as I got a lot of work done. I finished the Day with 116 miles to go.
Day 307 was an early start
walking and I completed 6 miles, leaving me 110 miles to go. I then drove up to
The UK Scouting Association http://www.scouts.org.uk/
National Scouts Conference in Leicestershire.
It was wonderful to meet all the
scouts and to be officially welcomed as a Scouts Ambassador. I had a thoroughly
enjoyable evening and it was an unforgettable night of genuine warmth and
kindness from every UK Scouting Association County Commissioner and young
scouts representing their counties.
Day 308 found me driving back home at 0700 hours to spend time with my Mum and Dad who had come to visit me. This has been a difficult year as I have not been able to spend as much time with my family as I want. Therefore this was a wonderful gift to spend time together.
Day 308 found me driving back home at 0700 hours to spend time with my Mum and Dad who had come to visit me. This has been a difficult year as I have not been able to spend as much time with my family as I want. Therefore this was a wonderful gift to spend time together.
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| Dad |
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| Mum |
Day 309 was a hectic day as I was busy inviting the BRIT mentors and young people from our charity partners to join me walking in London in December. The last day of the challenge will be 18th December at Canary Wharf and I'm hoping many of our BRIT supporters will be able to join me to commemorate the end of a long challenge. In between sending out invites I was walking to keep up with my miles.
Day 310 started with 102 miles to go! This marks the start of the countdown...only 21 days to go before the last day at Canary Wharf.
My wonderful friends and next
door neighbours, Ion and Sarah, have been there for me ever since I moved into
the cottage. They both look after me in so many ways I wouldn’t know where to
start. Not only are they my friends, but they are very much part of my family
and we all have a very special relationship with Ion and Sarah. I would be lost
without them and when I come home, I not only return to the cottage, but also
the warmth and friendship of my close friends in the village.
I wanted to mention Ion and Sarah
in this blog as they are foster parents to a Canine Partner called Taylor who
is being trained to be a guide dog for a lady who is both blind and a
wheelchair user and Taylor will be partnered with his new owner early next
year. Every day, Sarah and Ion take Taylor to Canine Partners and every evening
they pick him up. They look after Taylor all weekend and will also have him
with them over Christmas and the New Year. Canine Partners rely on volunteers
like Sarah and Ion to support them so that their dogs have a loving home in
between the intense training the dogs go through. I think this is a remarkable
act of kindness and support and they fit all this in as well as support the
Weald and Downland Museum, West Dean Gardens, the village and community as well
as me! Sarah and Ion are a very caring, loving and selfless couple and I absolutely
adore them. I am so lucky to have them in my life.
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| Visiting Canine Partners |
I ended the day having broken the 100 mile mark! The end is in sight!
Day 311 was incredibly busy as I got up early to get my miles in, then drove up to London where I had a BRIT media planning meeting for the final month.
It was super to meet James and
Sarah from Speed Communications http://www.speedcommunications.com/ and Anastasia from
Ketchum Pleon. http://www.ketchum.com/london
Both Speed Communications and Ketchum Pleon have gifted Media and PR support to
BRIT and I throughout the year and I am sincerely grateful for all their
support.
We all met with the BRIT Creative
Team of Darren Whittingham and James Kydd. Thalia volunteered her time to take
us through the agenda and it was a superb meeting and I left feeling positive
that we are going to work well together on the final month of the BRIT 2012
Challenge. It was a great shame that Kate Bosomworth, Chief Executive of Speed
Communications was unable to attend as Kate is recovering from an operation.
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| Great friend and Chief Executive of Speed Communications, Kate Bosomworth |
Kate and I first met when I
walked the London Marathon over two weeks in 2009. Kate was integral and vital
to the Media and PR strategy and she guided me through a very stressful and
high profile period of my life when I had very limited knowledge and experience
of the national media. Kate was running her own PR Media business called KTB PR
and three years on we have come full circle, I was delighted when she was
appointed Chief Executive of Speed Communications who was already gifting
support and it is fantastic to be working again with Kate. The Speed
Communications Team, together with Avril, Suzanne and Anastasia at Ketchum
Pleon are great.
I am not easy to work with at
times; after walking throughout the day, my working day starts in the evening so
they are flexible to my out of hours contact and everyone has to put up with me
when I am grumpy through tiredness and infections. There is also the advice
they continue to give which is always considered and supportive, but doesn’t
always sink in with me straight away. I am very principled when it comes to
running BRIT and whilst I always listen to advice, sometimes when I am feeling
tired and a bit vulnerable, any advice can feel like criticism. It never is and
it’s just the way I feel at times, so I have to say a huge thank you to
everyone at Speed Communications and Ketchum Pleon for the patience,
understanding and for putting up with me through a very long and difficult
year.
From a positive meeting with a
great team of friends I went to one of the most negative meetings I have
attended this year. Rather than dwell on this, as my great friend and BRIT
Chair of Trustees, Martin Lewis, would say, “Move on.” When someone asks me for
support, I will do my utmost to help. That’s not always possible, but I think I
am so fortunate to be surrounded by selfless, positive and kind people, that
it’s always a bit of a shock when you are let down and left to feel pretty low.
Martin is absolutely right – when it happens, move on!
What I needed then was to be in
the presence of the caring and warm friends I have the privilege to work with
and know.
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| My friend and BRIT Advisor, the Inspirational Alison Cox MBE - Founder and Chief Executive of Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) |
Who better to be with than Alison
Cox MBE, Founder and Chief Executive of Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) http://www.c-r-y.org.uk/ at
their reception at the House of Commons.
It is an honour to serve as
Patron of CRY and to attend the CRY annual Parliamentary Reception at
Westminster. The event was hosted by Sir Roger Gale MP, Dr John Pugh MP and
Kevan Jones MP and was the key event in CRY’s Raising Awareness Week.
Guest of Honour at the event was
CRY Patron Andrew Triggs-Hodge MBE - Olympic Gold Medalist at London 2012 in
the men's coxless four rowing.
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| The wonderful Alison Cox MBE flanked by just a few of her many CRY Patrons: Simon Halliday, Andy Scott, Andrew Triggs-Hodge MBE, Matt Wells, Jeremy Bates and me |
Other guests at the event were
CRY families, Bereavement Supporters and Representatives; CRY myheart Network
members; CRY
Patrons Ron Andrew MBE, Jeremy Bates, Simon Halliday, Bill Neely, Andy
Scott and Matt Wells; medical professionals; representatives from sporting
organisations; CRY Trustees; CRY Research
Fellows; CRY staff – and many others.
There were a number of speakers
at the event. MC for the evening was CRY Chairman Hugh Mulcahey and he
introduced: Anna Soubry MP, Under Secretary of State for Health; Professor
Sanjay Sharma, CRY Consultant Cardiologist; Andrew Triggs-Hodge MBE, CRY Patron
and Olympic Gold Medalist; and Alison Cox MBE, Founder and Chief Executive of
CRY. As part of her speech, Anna Soubry MP officially launched CRY's new 'Sibling
Grief' booklet. The young authors of this booklet - who have all lost a
brother or sister to young sudden cardiac death - were also in attendance at
the Reception.
It was a pleasure to meet and
speak to the many supporters of CRY.
I ended the day with 90 miles to
go.
Best wishes,
Phil