A school cycling team from Aspatria has completed a gruelling mountain bike challenge in southern Scotland to raise vital funds for research into brain tumours.
Teachers and pupils from Beacon Hill Community School embarked on the world-class 7stanes mountain bike trails on 2 November 2018 in aid of the Brain Tumour Research charity. The team, which included two teachers, two support crew and six teenage pupils, completed all seven trails in less than 48 hours and has raised more than £1000 so far.
Adam Young, Head of PE at Beacon Hill Community School, said: “What an amazing achievement by a fantastic bunch of pupils. Hard work and dedication gets results. They’ve worked hard to train for this and they’ve proven what they can do for a great cause.”
Their challenge was inspired by Brian Hoadley, a cycling enthusiast who died in October 2016 from a brain tumour. Following his death, Brian’s partner Penni Dymond donated a generous amount of cycling kit to the School and the team decided to thank her for her generosity by raising money in Brian’s name.
Penni, who lives in Fordingbridge, Hampshire, said: “Brian was a huge cycling enthusiast, a kind and generous man, never happier than when on his bike. His passion for life was infectious, he always saw good in people and brought the best out of them. He’d be delighted to know that this small offer has resulted in a group of children embarking on a huge cycling challenge that hopefully will inspire them to continue out of their comfort zones, push hard, laugh with each other and enjoy every moment along the way.”
Beacon Hill Community School will continue to support Brain Tumour Research in Brian’s name and the school has registered for the charity’s annual fundraising event, Wear A Hat Day. Taking place on Friday 29 March 2019, the event will see individuals, schools and companies don their hats to raise vital funds for the charity.
Andrea Pankiw, community fundraising manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “Well done to the team at Beacon Hill Community School for completing their challenge. They have done a wonderful and thoughtful thing in memory of Brian, and we are extremely grateful that they chose to support us.
“Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer yet, historically, just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease. With the support of teachers and pupils at Beacon Hill Community School, we are striving to change this.”
Brain Tumour Research funds sustainable research at Research Centres of Excellence in the UK; it also campaigns for the Government and the larger cancer charities to invest more in research into brain tumours in order to speed up new treatments for patients and, ultimately, to find a cure. The charity is calling for an annual spend of £35m in order to improve survival rates and patient outcomes in line with other cancers such as breast cancer and leukaemia.
To donate to Beacon Hill Community School, go to: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/adam-young20
To register for Wear A Hat Day 2019, go to: https://www.braintumourresearch.org/fundraise/wear-a-hat-day
