Donation to O'Connor Unit

We have raised enough money again to buy another Dyson fan for the cancer ward in the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital where my son Jim was treated for Hodgkins Lymphona last year..  the chemo can make the patients feel very hot and they don't have enough fans to give one to everyone.. so I have a sealed tin on my stall with a note asking people to put something in if they have enjoyed having a laugh at my funny quote slates... so far in less than a year we have raised enough to buy 3 of these fans for the ward.. We dropped the latest one off recently.   My son Jim is doing well after his stem cell transplant that he had the week before Christmas.. he is back at work part time now..but having regular check ups.. he really has had the best care possible from Dr Nigel O'Connor and his team at Shrewsbury, and also the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham where he had his stem cell transplant.. Thank you everyone..

Donation To O'Connor Unit

I have been raising money on my regular market stall for a few months now.I have sold some small paintings that were getting a little rough around the edges,and also I have a sealed tin on there with a request for donations if people have been having a laugh at my quote slates.. everyone has given generously and I had enough to buy 2 Dyson fans for patients in the O'Connor unit at Shrewsbury Hospital where my son has been treated for  Hodgkins Lymphona over the last 12 months or so..Chemotherapy can make patients very hot and there were never enough fans to go around everyone who needed one so they were very welcome!

We took them over to the hospital last night as we were in the area visiting another hospital for Bill--they were thrilled to have them!

My son Jim had a stem cell transplant in Dec at the QE hospital in Birmingham , he came out on New Years Eve and is back under the care of Dr. O'Connor again now.. he is doing really well and they are pleased with his latest results--

A huge thank-you everyone for your kind messages ,hugs and support over the past year-it means a lot that you care.  We are not on the market again until April 5th now but donations are still being given by students etc, and when the tin is full again we will be buying another fan for the ward! Thank  you very much everyone xxxxxx

 

 

 

Medieval Fair Ludlow and more.......

Well the weather was vile last weekend but it didn't stop the people attending the Medieval Fair in Ludlow..Wind and rain--we had it all! But we had plenty of waterproof sheets around the outside of the stall and it was quite cosy inside..

Don't think Bill wanted his photo took LOL...we were non-stop all weekend with customers--lots of folk down from The Wirrel,, lovely chatting with them-one of my favourite accents! The wind was gusting really bad on the Sunday so we packed up earlier than we would have normally-stuff was blowing around and it could have been dangerous...we had all the sheets to get dry ready for Wednesdays market...

It was quieter on the Wednesday market after the weekend, the Christmas shopping rush just didn't happen!!! However Bill did spot these beautiful lilies (My Favourite) on Farmers stall next door--I had to cut them right down as they were 4 ft tall!

I have been raising money for the past few months for the O'Connor ward at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital where my son Jim has been treated for Hodgkin's Lymphoma for nearly 12 months now..I was able to buy these 2 Dyson Fans to donate to the ward this week, after getting them at a better price for Black Friday! £50 off so £180 each--I was well chuffed. The patients will be pleased with them, as the chemo makes you very hot and sweaty sometimes, and there isn't enough fans to go round--these are ideal because there isn't any noise or a blade to hurt anyone..I will be dropping them off at the hospital next Tuesday..

Jim will be going into the QE hospital ,Birmingham next Thursday to have his stem cell treatment which hopefully will put him into remission....they have harvested his own cells to use, but they have also found a perfect match donor if they need one..The treatment will be really harsh-he will have 5 days very intensive chemo to wipe out every cell before giving him back his own stem cells which hopefully will grow into healthy cells and make him better..he will have to stay in until his white cells are high enough to help him fight any infections ...fingers crossed he will be out for Christmas but if not Christmas will go to him in hospital!

Facing Up To Kidney Cancer

I had the pleasure of meeting a lovely lady last autumn, who got in touch about coming to some of my workshops..Sarah went on to explain that she may have to cancel some of the workshops because her husband Jon had been diagnosed with terminal kidney cancer and had to make visits to the hospital sometimes at short notice...

She has gone on to be a very good friend to me and we have had many long late night chats / emails together because as you probably  know my dear son is fighting Hodgkins Lymphona and Haemophagocytic Syndrome .

Sarah has a lot of knowledge about chemo,scans and lots of other things that means I don't have to bother my son or his specialist for answers.

Sarah and another dear friend Jan who also has much knowledge about cancer have been my rocks in the darkest hours I can tell you... I am forever grateful for that.

Now Sarah's hubby Jon  has decided that he wants to raise awareness and money for the James Whale Facing Up To Cancer charity--- it is one of the hardest cancers to diagnose and its often too late for the patient by the time it is--which is what sadly has happened to Jon..more people die of it than are killed on Britons roads every year.

Jon is planning a 5,000 mile trip around Britain for the cause on his motorbike...starting at Blackpool Tower in June -- if you can spare a little for the cause all the details are on the website  a link here with more info here http://www.gaj.org.uk/news/5000-mile-ride-raises-kidney-cancer-awareness --- also here is a link in which Jon explains more about it https://www.facebook.com/midlandstoday/videos/vb.21263239760/10153256906484761/?type=2&theater

I hope the trip goes according to plan --and the weather is kind to him!
 If you have a motorbike I'm sure Jon would like you to join him for some of the trip-- Sarah is also organising other fund raising events including a auction to raise money--I have donated an oil painting and there is also a beautiful hand crocheted blanket made by Sarah herself--its really stunning,,

We wish Jon and Sarah all the best for the trip-- its an amazing thing you are doing!

It has made me think about raising some money for the unit that is looking after my Jim..they really are wonderful   - Dr Nigel O'Connor is a very ,very special man along with all his hard working staff...watch this space--