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
I have had two very emotional
days for many reasons. I’m not feeling quite right at the moment and it’s
definitely more than fatigue as I feel quite on the edge emotionally and
although I’m keeping everything together, these last couple of days have been
very hard to get through. I am feeling very cold and achy, so not too sure
what’s going on, but it’s been such a rollercoaster over the last 48 hours that
I am focused on what’s happening next to keep ticking over.
On Monday I started Day 323 at
Eltham College http://www.eltham-college.org.uk/
in the London Borough of Bromley. I received a very warm welcome from Paul
Henderson, the Headmaster, and it was a real pleasure to be back at my old
school. I attended Eltham College between 1980 and 1988, before leaving at 16.
They were quite tough years at home and a lot of difficulties at home were
reflected in my behaviour at school. I sometimes feel a little embarrassed
about the way I acted and the trouble I caused, however yesterday I took a huge
amount of strength from the kind words offered by many of my teachers who
remain at the school.
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| With the Headmaster of Eltham College and the Mayor of Bromley on Day 323 of my BRIT 2012 mile walk |
We spoke a little about those
years and those teachers, who were at the time made aware of the difficulties
at home, showed compassion, understanding and gave me a great deal of comfort
yesterday. So many years ago, but I am still very sensitive to those memories
and what I appreciated more than anything, were the teachers who went out of
their way to tell of their pride and happiness in what I am achieving now.
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| With students at Eltham College on day 323 of my BRIT 2012 mile walk |
It
takes very little to make someone feel better about themselves and I really
appreciate the words they chose and the way in which they spoke them as
returning to the school always has mixed emotions.
I am grateful to Councillor
Michael Turner, the Mayor of the London Borough of Bromley http://www.bromley.gov.uk/
for joining us in the morning, together with students from the school, and it
was great to walk round the school grounds with both staff and students.
From Mottingham I then drove on
to the London Royal Borough of Greenwich http://www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/site/
where I spoke at the University of Greenwich.
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| The Mayor of Greenwich & some of the students & staff of the University of Greenwich who joined me on my BRIT 2012 mile walk |
I then went on to walk with both
staff and students around the Old Royal Naval College http://www.ornc.org/ , the
National Maritime Museum http://www.rmg.co.uk/
and at the foot of the stunning Royal Observatory http://www.rmg.co.uk/royal-observatory/
and Greenwich Park.
I am grateful to Christine and
the staff and students of the University of Greenwich http://www2.gre.ac.uk/ who
welcomed me together with the Councillor David Grant, the Mayor of the Royal
Borough of Greenwich.
 |
| A cold Day 323 of my BRIT 2012 mile wlak in the London Borough of Greenwich |
I thoroughly enjoyed spending time waking with both staff
and students and seeing many of the famous and beautiful Greenwich landmarks.
On Day 324 I walked at Whitehall
and Horse Guards. My great friend, Lieutenant Colonel John Maddison MBE RN
(Royal Navy) had coordinated the day with Captain Keith Blount RN who is the MA
(Military Attaché) to the
Vice Chief of the Defence Staff.
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| Supported on my BRIT 2012 mile walk by the Armed Forces service chiefs |
I was absolutely humbled to have
Senior Officers from all three of the Services welcoming and joining me as we
walked at Whitehall.
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| Joined and supported on my BRIT 2012 mile walk by Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, General Sir Nicholas Houghton GCB CBE ADC Gen |
It was a great pleasure for me to meet and spend time
with, General Sir Nicholas Houghton GCB CBE ADC Gen, the Vice Chief of the
Defence Staff, Admiral Sir Mark
Stanhope GCB OBE ADC, First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff, General Sir
Peter Wall KCB CBE ADC Gen, Chief of the General Staff and Air Vice-Marshal B M
North OBE MA RAF, Assistant Chief of the Air Staff.
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| Joined and supported on my BRIT 2012 mile walk by General Sir Peter Wall KCB CBE ADC Gen, Chief of the General Staff |
The opportunity to spend time with each of the Senior Officers is rare and
I valued their time and the conversations that we enjoyed. This public display
and mark of their combined support is a huge boost to BRIT and I; however it
was also an opportunity for me to thank them for the tremendous support I have
received throughout the year from the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force and
many Cadet Forces in a vast number of counties.
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| Joined and supported on my BRIT 2012 mile walk by Air Vice-Marshal B M North OBE MA RAF, Assistant Chief of the Air Staff |
From the Ministry of Defence Main Building, I crossed the road to Horse
Guards where I was greeted by a good friend and former colleague, Major
General George Norton CBE.
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| Joined and supported by General Officer Commanding of London District, Major General George Norton, at Buckingham Palace |
General George is the Major-General commanding the Household Division
and he commands the troops of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. He is also
the General Officer Commanding of London District.
 |
| With Commodore Alex Burton RN |
I was also joined by
Commodore Alex Burton RN, another very good friend and it was an absolute
pleasure to spend time together as we walked through Horse Guards, along St
James’ Park lake and up to Buckingham Palace.
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| An amazing Day 324 at Whitehall |
It was a very special day for me
and one I shall treasure.
I then left for the London
Borough of Haringey where I visited the Mencap Centre http://www.mencap.org.uk/
in Tottenham.
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| Wonderful welcome from the Mencap Centre in Tottenham on Day 324 of my BRIT 2012 mile walk |
I was met by an inspirational lady called Angie De Spong who has
worked at the Centre for seven years. Angie was a delight to talk to and she
and her staff gave me a very warm welcome. I was fascinated to hear of the wide
variety of projects that Angie both coordinates and fundraises for as an
independent charity. I was sincerely grateful to be given the privilege of
meeting the carers and the adults who are supported.
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| At the Mencap Centre in Tottenham on Day 324 of my BRIT 2012 mile walk |
A very busy two days and I ended
Day 324 with 26 miles to go.
My very best wishes,
Phil