Astro Fund

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Rod Barrett successfully completed a series of four 10K runs (Sevenaoks, Hyde Park, Darent Valley and Esher Church School) this year amassing over £2,000 in sponsorship (£2,400 with Gift Aid).

Mary and Robbie Burton held their third 'Christmas Cheer' event at their home in December 2009 (see left) and raised £600, which has now increased to £900 thanks to a matched donation by Santander Bank.

Jenny Brazier organised a 'Pampered Chefs' evening. Over £600 was spent on products and the company donated the sum of £93.91 to Astro Fund.

Linda Rickford got together with people she sees regularly and, instead of sending each other Christmas cards, they pooled the money they would have spent and donated the sum of £50 to Astro Fund.

Lee Shann and Martyn Bridgewater (see right) raised the grand sum of £565 by taking part in the 2009 'Just Bike' Event.

Fruit and vegetable sales at Mary and Robbie Burton's B&B 'Meadow Springs" at Holme-next-the-Sea in Norfolk have raised £240 in 2009

The London 10k 2008. Martin Segal's team raised £4,431 for Astro Fund in memory of Martin's wife Stacey. Cath Slatter raised a further £100 in support of David Coupe, who has a LGG and is in junior school with her son Callum.

Cathi Core, who has undergone 2 craniotomies to remove her astrocytoma, completed the Leeds Family Fun Run with her young son Tom in May 2007. Meanwhile her husband Ian ran the Leeds Half Marathon, and together with friends they raised over £2,295. Their repeat performances in 2008 raised a further £1,158; this time with a team of 7 kids and 6 adults in the Fun Run and friend Sally joining Ian for the Half Marathon.

Liz Sanders and Mandy James of Redbournbury Watermill & Bakery near St.Albans held a wine and cheese party with delicious home-baked Redbournbury bread, raising £1,100 in 2007. In 2008 they held another tea party and raised a further £730, despite dreadful weather!

Dave and Nikki Collin are currently stationed in Germany and completed the Gutersloh Half Marathon 2008, raising £1274. Nikki's LGG remains stable and we wish Dave well as he returns to serve in Iraq.

Carol Wilson held a Paella Party on a sunny evening in June 2008 as that was the favourite food of her brother Alan, who died of a high-grade tumour in 2007. She raised £910, to be split between SDBTT and Astro Fund.

Scott Culverwell, who had surgery for his LGG in April 2006, ran the Reading Half Marathon in March 2007 and raised £617, following that up with the Richmond Half Marathon in May 2008 and a further £488.

Wayne Fogg of Rayleigh Estate Agency Connells jogged all the way from Rayleigh to Southend and raised £750 in support of Grace Connell who has a LGG. Scroll down the page to see a picture of Grace at her own Swing Night!

The Peter Culverhouse Memorial Trust have donated almost £9,000 to support our work over the past 3 years, and this year's donation will be an additional £3,318.57. Events including marathons, concerts and golf days have all made invaluable contributions to this wonderful total.

Jacqueline Gough (Astro Babe) and Alison Taylor (Star Supporter) romped their way round the Birmingham 5km Women's Hydro Active Challenge 2007 to raise £250

The London 10K 2007 attracted a number of runners raising money for the Astro Fund, including:

- Haldane Broby & team £2,576, plus £1,000 still to come from the Astrazeneca matched giving scheme.
- Philip & Pete Kitchener £1,535.51
- Josie Alderton & friend £654
- Martin Segal & friends £2,940
- Mike Scott £500 so far, including £250 from the PricewaterhouseCoopers matched funding programme.

Ann Hargreaves, whose nephew David Coupe has a paediatric LGG, held a tea party as part of the National Garden Scheme, raising £1,000.

Jim Hewitt, who has a low-grade astrocytoma, ran the London Marathon 2007, improving on previous results & raising £616 in the process.

Claire & Scott Franey held a Bond 007 Ball on 17th March 2007, and raised just over £20,000. They were joined by celebrities Alesha Dixon (formerly of Mistiq, now a solo artist who hosted the Brit Awards 2006) and England Goalkeeper David James, as well as many other valued friends.

Year 9 (especially 9E) at Salendine Nook High School and Technology College in Huddersfield have raised £245.43 by collecting money in Smarties tubes & raffling a jar of sweets. Thanks must also go the Year 10 Enterprise Initiative, especially Tom Pearson, who baked & sold lots of biscuits, making over £40. The Staff then held a coffee morning and raised a further £169.63. Everyone has been inspired by their teacher Cathi Core, who has a low-grade glioma.

The Staff at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP have raised £2,550 so far through various fundraising activites, after their colleague Sarah Kitchener was diagnosed with a low-grade glioma in Feb 2006. The latest event was a preview evening of the Bond movie Casino Royale, which raised a further £1,251.

Sarah's friend Cheryl Dickenson is off to New Zealand; her leaving party raised £414.72 through ticket sales and a collection box on the night.

The Peter Culverhouse Memorial Trust have donated £5,539.78 to support our work over the past two years, and this year's donation will be an additional £3,319.69. Their Thames Barge Trip on 10th Sept 2007 included Tower Bridge being raised for them to pass through. You can find out more about the PCMT and support their fundraising by clicking here.

Thank you to all the numerous individuals and companies who are helped to promote our Trek to Brazil in May 2007 by displaying posters, writing articles about us in newsletters, and inserting links to our website from their own. Examples of this valuable support can be found at www.pendlewood.com and www.eduscapes.co.uk

Jenny Ashburn completed the Great North Run 2006 in 2hrs, 4mins, 54 seconds to be precise! All the training paid off as she raised £500.

Kate Coupe's Tennis in the Park day raised £103; great fun was had by all, and some future Wimbledon Stars were spotted!

The Lodge of Antiquity No.2 has donated £2,890 towards the Gene-based research project based at the University of Hull, details of which can be found in the Research section of this website.

Simon Legg & Tony Giles Cycled Coast to Coast, 136 miles from Whitehaven to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, reaping the rewards of their training by enjoying wonderful weather & scenery whilst raising £1,049.

The Charities Committee of Slough Estates plc have donated £1,000 towards our work.

Ange Scrutton & Faiza Khan raised £338 at the Adidas Kingston Breakfast run, with Ange going on to raise a further £92 at the Wirral Coastal Walk 2005 before finally putting her feet up.

Duncan Goose completed the Isle of Wight Walk 2005 with his dog Juno and raised £870.97

Brain Tumour Action have donated the considerable sum of £10,000 towards our research project at The National Hospital for Neurology & Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, led by Dr.Jeremy Rees.

Tomkins plc have donated £350 to enable a telephone conference call support group to take place once a month for a year.

The Provincial Grand Lodge of Cheshire Freemasons have also donated £350 towards our new telephone support conference calls initiative.

The members of Hale Lawn Tennis Club put an extra few pounds on their entry forms for Tournament Week 2005 and raised a total of £300.

Davis Blank Furniss Solicitors have generously donated £10,000 towards our research funds.

Pannone & Partners Solicitors held a Fundraising Friday and raised £1,000 for the Astro Fund.

Gavin Peacock generously donated £1,500 from the proceeds of his Testimonial Match at QPR; you can read about his life by clicking here.

Fiona Sheen's Mile Swim Challenge 2004 raised £200, neatly matching her previous 2003 total.

Jane Bates of Fairfield Interiors and David Davies, Chief Executive of QPR Football Club, both completed the London Marathon in excellent times and raised over £1,000 each. Jane Bates then went on to run the New York Marathon 2004 and raised a further £620.65 in the process.

A Dress Down Day at Berkeley Scott Group Plc raised £171.36

QPR LSA Supporters Club & QPR LSA Race Night raised £1,207, and the Auction of Les Ferdinand's signed World Cup Shirt a further £325

A School Reunion Raffle of the Alderman Catleugh Girls Secondary School, King's Lynn, Norfolk £404

A Bucket Collection at the QPR v Huddersfield match by the QPR Loyal Supporters Association and the QPR Supporters Club collected £1,000

The Rio Tinto plc Social Club donated £200

A Car Boot Sale in Norfolk £82

A Dress Down Day at PayPoint Ltd, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire £77

The Lakes and Border Marches Classic Car Run over 300 miles from Coast to Coast in two days completed by Brian Murdoch and Len & Janis Wadge £150

A Coffee Morning in Bowdon, Cheshire £700

The London to Brighton Bike Ride 2001 was completed by a team of 23 raising £12,005.40, including a double whammy by Jan & Nick Webb who also completed the Manchester to Blackpool Bike Ride just two weeks later

A Dinner Party hosted by Jacqui Hiesler & Sarah Sullivan a mouthwatering £280

The Collection Box at Milsom's, Dedham, Colchester £22.34

Donations instead of presents at an Anniversary Party £250

A donation from Hale United Reformed Church Outward Giving Project £150

A Dress Down Day at Shepherd & Wedderburn, Edinburgh £77

August Bank Holiday Fun Weekend at the Shoulder of Mutton Pub, York £505

Loftus Road to Adam's Park Bike Ride by the QPR Loyal Supporters Association. A team of 15, including 2 on a tandem, raised £4,571

Katie Barrett sold over 45 pints of homemade soup, numerous sausage rolls & cakes during just one lunchtime at her workplace. In return, colleagues donated would they would normally have spent on lunch, raising over £530

Sarah Parry, who has a LGG, raised £317 for Astro Fund in the Great North Run 2008, following her 2007 success in the London 10k for SDBTT.

The Norfolk Family Walk at Holkam Hall raised over £5,000 in 2007, with over 150 people taking part and 688 miles covered, to add to the Walk Around the World total. Due to popular demand this has become an annual event, and in 2008 a further £10,000 (inc.gift aid) was raised on a stunning Autumn Day, with 882 miles covered by people and a lot of dogs! Many thanks to Christine Forecast for her unstinting work in memory of her Son-in-Law Paul Chamberlain, who is the inspiration behind Astro Fund. A special mention for 2008 also needs to go to Gemma Barrett and her family who raised over £3,600. See our forthcoming events page for details of next year's event & other fundraisers planned for the Norfolk area.

Rod Barrett jogged round his own Half Marathon course in support of his niece Gemma Barrett who has a LGG, raising twice his target to reach £3,060.51 in sponsorship.

Gemma's Aunt Mary Burton has also organised a number of successful events in Norfolk: her 2008 Summer Party & BBQ raised £780, with a further £205 raised through the sale of fruit, veg and greetings cards, whilst 2007 & 2008's Christmas Cheer Days raised £1,057 and of course she also took part in the Norfolk Family Walk with Gemma and many other members of their family.

Gresham's Pre-Prep School in Holt, Norfolk, raised a record amount of £811 for their dress-down day and playground walk in Nov 2008. The walk was led by 7 year olds Ellie Scott and Lexy Chamberlain. Lexy's Daddy Paul died of a LGG in March 2006; and it was Paul who inspired the foundation of Astro Fund in 2001.

Sarah Polack raised £772 at the London Half Marathon 2008, in support of her sister Jo, who has a LGG.

Nick Smith completed the tough Beachy Head Marathon 2008 in 4hrs 21mins and raised £1,052. Money has been split between Astro Fund (in support of his 9 year old Godson David, who has a LGG) and SDBTT Alfie Morland Fund (in support of a work colleague whose baby's life was taken by a high grade brain tumour)

Julia Price, Nigel Priestley and friend Cath travelled over 500 miles and climbed over 3,000 metres in their 3 Peaks Challenge 2007, raising £1,299 in support of their friend Sarah Kitchener who has a LGG. In 2008, Julia and Nigel completed the Kennet & Avon Canal Walk, raising a further £915.26

Veronica Tucker completed the Adidas Women's 5k Challenge 2008, raising £378.21

Justin Cole stormed round the London Marathon course in 3hrs 59mins and 21seconds to beat his fundraising target and donate £3,486.10 in support of his brother Sam who has a LGG.

'Onstage' hosted one of their regular variety shows in Leeds, with all acts donating their talents and time for free. This great showcase raised £2,050.

Rachael Newman-Sanders held a Sam's Campaign tea party in memory of Paul Chamberlain, who is the inspiration behind the Astro Fund, and raised £100.

Her husband Ed, who had cycled alongside Paul in previous fundraising events, then got a team together to cycle from London to Cambridge, raising a further £1,256.

Hilary Bagguley, whose daughter Rebekah has a LGG, held a garden party at her home and raised £1,275

Angela Smith & her daughter Hannah Wells did a car boot sale and raised £80, and will be taking part in the Holkham Hall sponsored walk 2008

Jane Willson stormed her way round the Shakespeare Half Marathon in April 2008, raising £750 in support of her friend Rachel who has a LGG

The Yorkshire Dales 3 Peaks Challenge was completed by Joanna Bailey & colleagues from PricewaterhouseCoopers, London, as part of their support for Sarah Kitchener, who was diagnosed with a LGG in Feb 2006. Together they raised £17,637, which included £5,750 from the PWC matched funding programme.

Family friend of Sarah Kitchener, Teresa Dawson, held a garden party at her home in June 2007 and raised £4,338 thanks to the support of family, friends and businesses in the local area.

Matt Sudlow and Mike Gilbey completed a bike ride from Cherbourg to Biarritz, raising £4,014, with more to come from the PricewaterhouseCoopers matched funding programme.

Marcus Brissenden was joined by colleagues on a cycle ride from London to Oxford, raising £7,969. This included a donation from Dow Jones of £2,500.

Heidi Reakes ran the 'Great West Run 2007' around Exeter (13.1 miles), encouraged from the sidelines by her fiance Pete Blunden who has a LGG, and with her friend Gemma Morris running alongside her. They have raised £1,246, Pete, meanwhile, is busy designing us a brand new website. Watch this space!

Kate Coupe, whose young son has been living with a LGG since he was a toddler, held a tea party as part of the March 2007 "Sam's Campaign", raising £243.

Grace Connell who was diagnosed with a LGG in 2006 held a "Step Into Swing" night with her great friend Nikki Clark. They made over £3,900 as well as gaining valuable local press coverage in the Essex area, and are busy planning another great party for the future.

Liz Knight then completed the Malvern Half Marathon 2008 to raise £363 in further support of Grace

David Spencer and James Wigglesworth ran the Wilmslow Half Marathon 2007, raising £376

David Perrow, whose partner Sarah Kitchener was diagnosed with a LGG in February 2006, ran the Reading Half Marathon 2007 with his friends Matthew Green & Daniel Albert. Together they raised £3,080.

Caroline Ringrow is a friend and colleague of Sarah Kitchener's. Caroline ran the Paris Marathon in April 2007, raising £1,195. This includes £250 from PricewaterhouseCoopers matched funding programme.

Ruth Blundell, whose young daughter Lily has a LGG, held Sam's Campaign tea parties at Lily's school and in her local village hall , raising £1,600. You may have seen Lily and her sister Harriet on TV if you live in the Tyne Tees area!

Bramhall Web have kindly given us a free listing on their website.

Dane Housing of Cheshire have donated £100 to support our work.

Pipex have raised £228 from a raffle held at their Christmas party. Cheers!

Ramsden FC's sponsored walk, organised by Gerald Carter on October 22nd 2006, has raised £3,992 on behalf of Sarah Kitchener, who has a low-grade brain tumour and is the sister of one of the club members. The circular route began and ended at the Nag's Head Pub, which helped the atmosphere along no end by supplying free food to the walkers and organising a raffle and extra sponsorship to boost the total raised.

Mark & Dan, also friends of Sarah, did a successful if scary skydive, raising £622

Julia and Nigel Pike completed the Lyke Wake Walk in September 2006 and raised £2,611 in support of their friend Sarah Kitchener. They walked this classic Yorkshire route of 40 miles mainly in the fog, starting at midnight so that they could do most of it in the daylight!

Pownall Park Tennis Club raised £21 at their raffle during a Ladies' Tennis Tournament

Karen Alderton completed the Cornwall Coastal Path Challenge in July 2006, inspired by her daughter Josie who was diagnosed with a LGG in September 2004. Karen was supported by husband Paul and friends Mike and Sonya, as well as Josie and her fiancee Roger. Including additional funds raised through the collection of mobile phones for recycling, Karen has raised over £6,117. Karen, Josie and Roger have also managed to get valuable press coverage for their story.

Kate Humphrey completed the London Marathon 2006 in 4 hours 6 minutes and raised £354.50 for the Astro Fund.

Wilkinson have made a donation of £300 towards funding a year of telephone support conference calls.

A sponsored walk in Sedgeford, Norfolk has raised over £1,000 so far, with money still to come in. If you would like to participate in any other fundraising events in this area, please email our Regional Fundraising Co-ordinator Christine Forecast. A Norfolk Dinner Dance took place on 19th November 2005 and raised over £11,000.

Years 5 & 6 at Cheadle Hulme Junior School held a Dance Competition and raised £46.27. A delicious Cake Sale held by Class Y3H raised £78.57, and their Lunchtime Children's Disco a further £52.18. Collections after Music Concerts have raised £256.71 in 2005 and £253 in 2006.

Cheadle Hulme Senior School Year 7 did a Colour Themed Fancy Dress Fun Run and raised £3,724.86.

Cheadle Hulme Senior School Charity Hike 2004 raised £600, and the Charity Hike 2005 a further £300

Toby Kennon had an extreme haircut and raised £427.

The East Essex Caving Instructors Team has donated £888.75

Nadia Larsson & her husband Alex ran the Nike Richmond 10K Race and raised £1010.

The Collection Box at The Crown & Sceptre, Shepherd's Bush, London has gathered £366.43, and the Raffle of a Gallon of Whisky a further £137.25

The Probation Dept of Feltham Young Offenders Institution have donated £100 winnings from their Lottery Syndicate

Martin Segal completed the London Triathlon in 2hrs 7mins and raised over £3,000.

Grahame Molen raised £287 running, swimming & cycling alongside Martin Segal in the London Triathlon. Impressive teamwork!

The Collection Box at The Hare Arms, Stow Bardolph, Norfolk £82.56

Andrew Eales raised a total of £513 by running the Windsor & Reading Half Marathons

Two Dinner Dances in Bowdon, Cheshire raised a total of £13,156

The London to Brighton Bike Ride 2002 was completed by a team of 52, with sponsorship money totalling £16,072

The Collection Box at The Rose & Crown, Snettisham, Norfolk has gathered £39.26

Terry Davies raised £250 from a Sponsored Silence during the England v Argentina World Cup Match

The ASB v QPR LSA Football Match raised £237.72

The Duke of York, Acton, London, raised £1,043 50 at their Race Night

The Collection Box at Antonio's Wine Bar, King's Lynn, Norfolk £18

Coffee/Wine Afternoon/Evening in Cheshire raised £1,656. Gift, cake, bric-a-brac stalls, a raffle and a sealed bid auction for a Barbour jacket coupled with some very generous friends were a recipe for success!

GBM Support Services have donated £100

The Collection Box at Prontaprint, King's Lynn, Norfolk £25.10

Maz Eshmade has recycled some of her old clothes to raise £24

Registered Charity Number: 1133561