Money raised for Elsie-Rose & Friends!

I had a wander down to the Dolphin Inn in Rock-a-Nore Road this evening for the presentation of £3,253.00 to the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation, which is a significant contribution to the usual £5,000 required to set up a body as a registered charity (Government website).

The cheque for £3,253.00 was presented to Elsie-Rose, happily recently recovered following a hospital admission, and now she's back to school too, and to Karen (on the left of the photograph), a trustee of the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation; behind are Mark and Jason, who paddled across the channel on 17th of October in a kayak to raise funds, and fellow fund raisers Kerry and Paul.

Mark, Jason, Elsie-Rose and cheque!

A reminder of Mark and Jason crossing the Channel.

Thanks must go to all those who raised funds, and including a significant contribution from regulars at the Dolphin, including people donating prize money on Thursday Quiz Nights, via Crowdfunding and a special raffle (and thanks to local businesses for supplying prizes),  and through direct sponsorship.

If you want to know more about Elsie-Rose, the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation and/or SMA Type 1, you can refer to an earlier blog where I reported the safe return of Mark and Jason, or go to her mother's guest blog posted in August.

My respect to all and congratulations once again, Elsie-Rose is one hell of a strong and wonderful character, and I am humbled by her, her mother, and her family & friends. 👍

Dungeness, next stop Boulogne, in aid of Elsie-Rose...

Elsie-Rose

This morning, about 05.15, Mark and Jason posing inside the Dolphin Inn, Rock-a-Nore Road, before leaving to undertake their Kayak Marathon in aid of the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation: see previous blog for more information.

We drove to Dungeness to meet them before they cross the Channel, Mark and Jason had come from Rye Harbour in the Support Boat (crew: Will and Keith); about 06.45.

Coming to their adoring public

Waving to their adoring public 

Off they go! 

Next Stop Boulogne; departed 06.55

By now they should be in the middle of the Channel, good luck to them!

Fund-raising/collecting pledges for this venture will carry on for the next couple of weeks, if you would like to contribute, go to Crowdfunding, or visit the Dolphin Inn and drop spare cash into the collection box please, many thanks!

The adoring public included Maureen, Louise, David, Maz, a fisherman we were standing by on the beach, and me 😉

Elsie-Rose & Friends: A Marathon in a Kayak!

Elsie-Rose

Well, it's getting very close now for Mark Little and his team, who will be undertaking the equivalent of a marathon, but using their arms rather than their legs, when they kayak across the English Channel from Dungeness to Boulogne this coming week, probably on Tuesday or Wednesday if the forecast stays true. As I've said before, this will be in support of Elsie-Rose and the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation. 

Local lass Elsie-Rose was diagnosed with Type I SMA in September 2014, a condition that causes severe muscle weakness, and results in problems moving, eating, breathing and swallowing. Without intervention, most children with Type I SMA die within the first 2 years of life, sadly, however, the cheerful and resilient Elsie-Rose strives to carry on and enjoy life just like any other young 4 year-old, despite fractured limbs and many other complications, and she keeps on smiling! 

Because many of the expenses involved in supporting children with Type I SMA are not provided by the Department of Health or NHS, the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation was set up to help provide help and financial support to families with disabled, sick, and terminally ill children. After meeting Elsie-Rose and her family, Mark and his team decided to kayak across the English Channel with the aim of raising money for Elsie-Rose and the Foundation.

Mark Training

Before setting off to France, indeed, on this Monday coming (20th August), from 3.30 pm at the Dolphin Inn in Rock-a-Nore Road, Hastings (opposite the fish market, fish huts and RX134 Stacey Marie Fishermen's Museum outdoor exhibit), there will be a charity raffle in support of this fundraising. 

Kayak IPA

In addition, 2 breweries have already contributed a firkin (72 pints) of ale each, and all the proceeds from their sale will go towards the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation (many thanks to Wantsum and Marsdens breweries), and with the likelihood of another 2 firkins in the metaphorical pipeline! Watch out for the pumpclip in the image above.

To make contributions towards supporting this brave young girl and others with similar problems, as many local people and businesses already have done, many thanks, please make a donation via Crowdfunding, or visit the Dolphin Inn and make a pledge to support this Kayak Marathon, or put something in the collection box on the bar please. Indeed, all contributions will be very gratefully received, many thanks!

If you wish to know more about Elsie-Rose, the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation and their campaign, you can go to their facebook page or twitter page. If you would like more details about SMA Type 1, go to the Spinal Muscular Atrophy Support UK website. 

Good luck for Tuesday, and best wishes to Elsie-Rose, her family and friends!

Planet Hastings Crazy Golf & British Championships 2018 AND

OK, a library photograph! 

If you want to play on the Pirate Golf, one of the 3 courses at Hastings Adventure Golf, this weekend (website), you may well have a problem, no, not snowfall! That's a library image of mine (pretty picture), however, there may well be some light rainfall this afternoon and tomorrow (Sunday) morning... Oh yes, back to the point, this weekend Hastings hosts the British Championships 2018 (website), so expect congestion or, more likely, the Pirate Golf course will be closed to non-competitors!

Talking about Planet Hastings Crazy Golf Club reminds me of the recent generous donation they gave to Mark Little, contributing towards his 4-person team and their crossing the English Channel by kayak challenge in 3 months time (August). They will be travelling from Dungeness to Boulogne (Mark et al, not the 2 Davids and Maz) in aid of raising funds for the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation.

Local lass, young Elsie-Rose, was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Type 1 in September 2014, a condition that causes severe muscle weakness and results in problems with moving, swallowing, consequently eating, and breathing. Without appropriate intervention, most children with SMA Type 1 die within the first 2 years of their lives sadly. Thankfully, the resilient Elsie-Rose is determined to carry on and enjoy her family life just like other young children of her age!

Elsie-Rose

Because many of the expenses involved in supporting children with SMA Type 1 are not provided by the Department of Health, NHS, or local services, the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation was set up to provide help and financial support to families with disabled, sick and terminally ill children. After meeting Elsie-Rose and her family, Mark and his team decided that they would raise funds for Elsie-Rose and the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation by kayaking across the English Channel.

If you would like to know more about the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation you can go to their facebook page or twitter page. If you would like to read more information about SMA Type 1, go to the Spinal Muscular Atrophy Support UK website. 

If you would like to make a contribution towards supporting this courageous wee lass and the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation please make a donation via Crowdfunding. Or you could visit The Dolphin Inn, 11-12 Rock-a-Nore Road, Hastings TN34 3DW, and make a pledge to support the team's kayak challenge, and/or add to the collection box on the bar, indeed, all contributions would be very much appreciated, many thanks!

Mark training for Channel Challenge, Elsie-Rose & SMA Type 1

As I've mentioned a number of times now, Mark Little and 3 other Team members are going to cross the English Channel by kayak in August, leaving from Dungeness, and landing in Boulogne several hours later, no doubt with aching arms! Why? Well, to help raise funds for local lass Elsie-Rose, the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation, and to ensure greater awareness of SMA Type 1.

Elsie-Rose was diagnosed with SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy) Type 1 in September 2014, a condition that causes severe muscle weakness, and creates problems with movement, breathing and swallowing. Sadly, without intervention, most children with SMA Type 1 die within the first two years of their shortened lives. However, with her courageous and strong character, Elsie-Rose strives to enjoy life just like any other 4 year old!

Mark practicing out there!

The Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation was also set up to provide help and financial support to families with disabled, sick, and terminally ill children. After meeting Elsie-Rose and members of her family, Mark and his team decided to take up the challenge and kayak across the English Channel with the aim of raising money for Elsie-Rose, and for the Foundation.

Consequently, they are seeking donations via Crowdfunding to go towards the cost of any special equipment Elsie-Rose may need, and to provide the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation with funding and to support other families in need. There is also a collection box and sponsorship forms at the Dolphin Inn, 11-12 Rock-a-Nore Road, Hastings TN34 3DW.

A wee bit closer

If you wish to know more about Elsie-Rose and the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation you can go to their facebook page or twitter page. If you would like more information about SMA Type 1, go to the Spinal Muscular Atrophy website.

To help support the courageous young Elsie-Rose and others, a donation via Crowdfunding would be very gratefully received, or visit the Dolphin Inn and make a pledge to support the Kayak Team, or add to the collection box, many thanks!

Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation Fundraising Update.

Following Natasha Kelly's successful completion of the Hastings Half Marathon on Sunday and raising nearly £1,500 for the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation (blog), this is an update on how the fundraising is going for Mark Little and the 3 other volunteers in his team, who will be kayaking across the English Channel from Dungeness to Boulogne in August (blog). They will also be fundraising in support of the local 4 year-old with Type I SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy), Elsie-Rose, whose grandfather and other family members work in the local fishing industry, and the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation. 

Young Elsie-Rose was diagnosed with Type I SMA in September 2014, a condition that causes severe muscle weakness, and results in problems moving, eating, breathing and swallowing. Without intervention, most children with Type I SMA die within the first 2 years of life, however, the resilient Elsie-Rose strives to carry on and enjoy life just like all other 4 year olds, or more so! 

Because many of the expenses involved in supporting children with Type I SMA are not provided by the Department of Health or NHS, the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation was set up to help provide help and financial support to families with disabled, sick, and terminally ill children. After meeting Elsie-Rose and her family, Mark and his team decided to kayak across the English Channel with the aim of raising money for Elsie-Rose and the Foundation.  

Donations are being sought via Crowdfunding which will go towards necessary equipment for Elsie-Rose and her carers, and to contribute funds towards the Foundation so that it may support other families in need. So far £440 has been donated via Crowdfunding, many thanks! There is also a collection box for donations and sponsorship forms in the Dolphin Inn at 11-12 Rock-a-Nore Road, Hastings TN34 3DW. 

If you wish to know more about Elsie-Rose, the Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation and their campaign, you can go to their facebook page or twitter page. If you would like more details about SMA Type 1, go to the Spinal Muscular Atrophy website. 

To make a contribution towards supporting this brave 4 year-old and other children with similar problems, please make a donation via Crowdfunding or go and visit the Dolphin Inn and make a pledge to support the team's kayaking challenge, or add to the collection box, indeed, all contributions are very gratefully received, many thanks!

Raising Money for Elsie-Rose and SMA Type 1

The landlord of the Dolphin Inn, Mark Little, and 3 other hardy volunteers, will be taking on the challenge of kayaking across the English Channel from Dungeness to Boulogne in August to support a local lass, 4 year-old Elsie-Rose and SMA Type 1. 

Elsie-Rose was diagnosed with Type I SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy) in September 2014, a condition that causes severe muscle weakness, and which can result in problems moving, eating, breathing and swallowing. Unfortunately, without intervention, most children with Type I SMA die within the first 2 years of life. However, the resilient Elsie-Rose strives to carry on just like any other 4 year old! 

The Elsie-Rose & Friends Foundation was set up to provide help and financial support for families with disabled, sick, and terminally ill children and, after meeting Elsie-Rose and her family, Mark and friends decided to kayak across the English Channel with the aim of raising money for Elsie-Rose and the Foundation.

Consequently, they are seeking donations to their cause via Crowdfunding towards equipment Elsie-Rose may need in the future, and to give the Foundation funds it needs to support other families in need. Indeed, £350 has already been donated, including £250 from a kind anonymous donor! There will also be pots for donations and sponsor forms in the Dolphin Inn at 11-12 Rock-a-Nore Road, Hastings TN34 3DW. 

If you wish to know more about Elsie-Rose, the Foundation and their campaign, you can go to their facebook page or twitter page. If you would like more details about SMA Type 1, go to the Spinal Muscular Atrophy website.

To help support this brave young lass and others, a donation either via Crowdfunding or by visiting the Dolphin Inn and making a pledge to support the team's kayaking challenge, or to add to the collection pots, would be gratefully received, many thanks.