PAST EVENTS

marathon man

Vincent Rochard represented us in the ING New York City Marathon on the 6 November 2011 and then if that's not enough he’s also trying for a place in the Paris Marathon in 2012! Vincent is French and has lived in the UK for 14 years. He only started running just over two years ago. Since then, running has become part of his lifestyle and he has already completed one marathon in under three and a half hours! This was supporting a national charity and Vincent ran as a tribute to his sister.

This time Vincent has chosen for the money to come to The Cicely Foundation to support two local charities: First Opportunities; a unique therapy playgroup for young children with special needs and also Julia’s House; providing respite care for children in the Dorset area.

Have you ever wanted to run? If so, Vincent is happy to provide an introduction to running session. It is designed to encourage people into the benefits of running in a very approachable way, especially targeted at beginners in a social group. A small donation per person per session will be given to the charities. Vincent can be contacted on uk20cent@hotmail.com.

Donations can be made at Just Giving

Annual cricket match supports Julia's House

Local cricket teams originally from the Broadstone area celebrated the 30th anniversary of their annual cricket match. The event took place at Canford School. Specially designed T shirts were kindly donated by Ringwood Brewery, which were sold, and together with a cake baking competition managed to raise £283.00 to support Julia’s House. The amount was match funded by Steve and Maureen Cliffen and a cheque for £600 was presented to Mike Bartlett.

Many thanks indeed to Jim Bomphrey for organising the fund raising, and a huge thank you to Ringwood Brewery for donating the shirts.

London to Paris - Well done Sarah!

On the 14th September, Sarah Cunningham set off on a 4 day challenge to cycle the 300 or so miles from London to Paris! Sarah, whose partner Sean is currently our Project Manager at Cicely Peace Matunda, managed this amazing feat to raise funds for the children of Cicely Peace Matunda School/Orphanage in Tanzania. So far approximately £800 has been raised, which will be match funded by Cicely Founders. Sarah said "It's all in aid of a very worthy cause (of course!!) although there were moments during the trip when I questioned my own sanity! It was a wonderful experience and having recently met the children and visited the orphanage, I feel privileged to be able to help them. The children are always so happy and keen to learn we must do what we can to support their basic needs". Many, many thanks Sarah and to everyone who has supported her.

sponsored skydive

Ten intrepid charity supporters jumped out of a plane from 10,000 ft to raise money for Julia’s House and Youth Cancer Trust. The team members were Bernard Allen, Dawn Bartlett, Anne Beale, Billy Cliffen, Gary Morris, Lesley Watson, Charlie Williamson, Emma Williamson, Keith Williamson and Roberta Williamson (pictured). A Total of £4,000 has been raised and as usual this will be match funded by Steve and Maureen Cliffen, Cicely Founders. Thank you to the team for their incredible feet of bravery and many thanks to everyone who donated to this event.

premiership football event

The official site www.bobwilsonsoccercycle.com gives an excellent day-to-day diary of where the team were and what they were up to during the eleven day event, along with some additional photographic evidence.

Along with Steve, the ‘star of the show’ Bob Wilson and veteran peddler David Tweddell, there was a support team of Maureen, Megs Wilson, June Tweddell, Mick Lee, Becky Lee, Project Manager Gareth Parker and photographer Tom Bunning. Their work was absolutely invaluable and didn’t always get high profile treatment of the riders, e.g. whilst Steve was meeting all the Arsenal players and staff, Maureen was at a laundrette in St Albans!

Steve collected sponsorship of nearly £3,000, an amazing amount!!!! With the matched funding from Maureen and Steve, this has enabled us to present at cheque to the Willow Foundation for a fantastic £6,000!

This money will be very well spent by Willow in providing Special Days for seriously ill people aged 16 – 40 yrs.

Steve found the 530 mile ride in ten days (plus one rest day in Bolton) pretty hard work at times but he had trained and prepared well for it and managed to arrive in Newcastle a little weary but pretty much in one piece. The adventure of visiting every Premier League ground and meeting some famous people was extremely enjoyable and something that will live with him for a very long time.

Bob was also well prepared and did tremendously well, not only in completing the cycling but also in admirably coping with the necessary media/marketing/PR demands as well as finding the time and energy to speak to literally hundreds of interested and enthusiastic supporters at the grounds and along the route the length and breadth of the country.

Thanks again, everyone of you, for your generous support – it is really appreciated.

Diamond and Ice Party

To celebrate the Captain's club fourth birthday, an evening of glitz and glamour was held at the Captain's Club Hotel in Christchurch. 'Dancing On Ice' star, Matt Evers hosted the event, and entertainment was supplied by a Lady GaGa tribute and the lovely 'Song Birds'. The evening was a huge success and £9,000 was raised to be divided equally between The Cicely Foundation and The Jigsaw Appeal. Many thanks to Tim Lloyd, Robert Wilson and Cheryl Davis from the Captain's Club for their organisation and hospitality.

Kilimanjaro 2010

In October 2010, a team of 19 set out to climb Africa's highest mountain to raise money for Cicely Peace Matunda School and Orphanage. A fantastic total of over £27,000 was raised, which will be match funded by Steve and Maureen Cliffen to provide the school with a new residential building.

The group had the opportunity to visit Cicely Peace Matunda and were able to see the building work being carried out. Thank you to everyone involved.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Stuart Wallis designed and built a replica of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang! This amazing vehicle, complete with child catcher, was a highlight of the 2010 Ringwood Carnival. All the proceeds collected were donated to The Cicely Foundation, totalling £1,640, which will be given to Julia's House Hospice.

Alpine Cycle Challenge

In August, Cicely Trustee John Langridge cycled from Albertville in France to the top of the highest paved mountain pass in Europe, the Col d'Iseran. This 100km ride climbed 2,470 metres (8,150 feet in old money). A real feat of endurance!

Bournemouth's Youth Cancer Trust was the beneficiary of the £1,100 he raised for the Cicely Foundation. With 'matched' funding from Steve and Maureen Cliffen, John presented the cheque for an impressive £2,200 to the Youth Cancer Trust.

Midsummer Ball

Thank you to the Captain's Club in Christchurch for organising the most wonderful evening to raise funds for The Cicely Foundation and The Jigsaw Appeal. The food and entertainment were fabulous! A cheque for £3,300 was presented to The Cicely Foundation.

London Marathon - Hilary England

Hilary England has completed the London Marathon last April for The Cicely Foundation, and raised a total of £2,300.00.

Forty Three Women and Ten Bridges

The Willow Foundation celebrated its Ten Year Anniversary by gathering a group of 43 women together to walk along the River Thames in London and over ten bridges.

In fancy dress and great humour teams from Christchurch, South East London, Middlesex, Cambridge and Hertfordshire set off from Vauxhall Bridge and finished at St Katherine’s Dock after crossing Tower Bridge. The weather was kind and a memorable time was had by all.

Willow Foundation founders Bob and Megs Wilson were able to see the Christchurch team off on their way to London from the South Coast at 7.00 am and said, “We were thrilled Cicely were able to organise this wonderful event and thank you so much to everybody who raised money to provide special days for seriously ill young people.”

GALA DINNER SUCCESS

The second Cicely Gala Dinner held at the Royal Bath Hotel in Bournemouth in October proved to be a fabulous success. Friends, family and supporters arrived from all over the UK and guests flew in from Ireland, Switzerland and France. A great evening of fun and entertainment was had by all.

Scott Charlton did a fantastic job as M.C. and guests listened with interest to our Honorary Patron, Bob Wilson OBE, tell fascinating stories from his life in football and as a TV presenter.

Well done to Bournemouth Collegiate School, Grant James and The Rat Pack for really getting the evening swinging.

As ever, the auction and casino proved popular and we were absolutely delighted to raise a staggering £26,000 to support projects at Julia’s House Children’s Hospice, Demelza House Children’s Hospice, Cicely Peace Matunda School and Orphanage and Bournemouth’s Youth Cancer Trust.

Thanks to the Gala Dinner committee of Caroline Welsh, Fran May, Fiona Langridge and Christine Langton for all their hard work and the wonderful group of volunteers who gave up their time to help on the night.

LONDON MARATHON

It was a warm day for April as the 35,000 runners set off from Greenwich Park for the recent London Marathon. To see so many runners spill through the gates, each with a cause close to their hearts was quite a sight. To train for such an event is a huge commitment and it was great to see the brave and determined former London Fireman, Mick Lee, representing the Cicely Foundation.

Mick had an impressive start and managed the first half of the course in well under two hours. At 20 miles he said, “My body just blew up and I was struggling”. Despite the sweltering heat he ploughed on and went over the finish line just missing the magic four hour mark – an amazing feat for someone who has never run anything like this before.

Mick wishes to say a big thank you to all those who supported and encouraged him and all your donations. A fantastic sum of almost £4,000 was raised for Demelza House and Julia’s House the two Cicely-linked Children’s Hospices.

Ireland North To South 9th- 14th April 2009

Over Easter a resolute group of Bromley Rugby Club members cycled from Malin Head to Mizen Head, the whole of Ireland north to south, to raise funds for Cicely! Covering 410 miles they experienced some wonderful hospitality and some fairly mixed weather.

With the total money raised in the region of an amazing £13,000 we owe the whole team a great big thank you! Money raised will support Demelza House and Julia’s House the two Cicely-linked Children’s Hospices.

Special thanks to Laing O’Rourke, Paul Collins employers, who donated a huge and impressive £5,000.

Indian Motorcycle Challenge 18th-27th October 2008

Cicely Foundation Chairman, Steve Cliffen, recently completed the Indian Motor Bike Challenge and returned to the UK in one piece despite tackling some very difficult biking conditions. These included off road mountain passes as well as negotiating the chaotic Delhi traffic.

Steve said, “The expedition was far more challenging than expected but it was a wonderful experience”. Although India has one of the fastest growing economies in the world the gap between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have not’s’ is very evident. The intensity of India’s colours, smells, tastes and sounds are immense. You are left stunned by the beauty of the land and wonderful demeanour of the people.

Many thanks to those who supported the venture particularly C.W. Fellowes Accountancy of Hampshire for their generous contribution which will go directly to the Youth Cancer Trust in Bournemouth.

Billy Conquered Africa's Highest Mountain!

Cicely Foundation director Billy Cliffen has just returned from Tanzania having successfully reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. Billy quoted “It was very tough at times, particularly dealing with the altitude, but I had great fun and it was definitely a once in a lifetime experience!”

Billy would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their generous donations and/or assistance. Over £1000 was raised through ‘Billy2Kili’ for the Cicely Foundation.