Five intrepid people are planning to undertake the 26 mile Hallow 12 Parish Challenge on Saturday 6 July 2024. The marathon hike takes participants through 12 picturesque parishes in the Worcestershire countryside.
The people taking part
Sue Farrall, (third from left) and Emily-Jane Scandrett (second from right) have both been diagnosed with mesothelioma, a terminal asbestos-related cancer. They will be joined on the 26 mile walk by Emily-Jane’s husband Ryan (third from left), Alida Coates (on the left of the picture) a senior partner at law firm Irwin Mitchell, and Sophie Phillips (second from left) who is the MesotheliomaUK nurse specialist for the West Midlands region. Also pictured is the manager of ASCE, Neil Bishop (on the right of the picture).
Sue used to run, but she’s determined to keep on walking
Sue used to run ten miles on Sunday mornings ‘just for fun’ before her diagnosis in 2022, at the age of 56. She said: “I was devastated when I was given the news. I didn’t think I fitted the demographic of mesothelioma, which is generally associated with older people or men who have knowingly worked with asbestos.
“After undergoing surgery in 2023, I set myself the challenge of completing the Hallow 12 Parish Challenge. Two of my friends are also taking part with me. Our team of three friends is called ‘The Broken Ones’ because we’ve all gone through life-changing illnesses. But rather than focus on the past and what we can’t ever do again, we‘re focusing on what we can do now.”
Sue and Emily-Jane want to raise awareness about asbestos
In addition to raising funds for these important charities, Sue and Emily-Jane also want to raise awareness around mesothelioma and the dangers of asbestos exposure.
“The reality is that we are all at risk of exposure. It was banned for use in the UK in 1999 but is still present in many public buildings like schools, hospitals, leisure centres and high street stores. As these buildings age and deteriorate, more people will be at risk of exposure to the devil’s dust,” continues Sue.
Emily-Jane’s horrid path to diagnosis
Emily-Jane commented: “I was five weeks pregnant when my symptoms first started. It took a horrid 17 months for me to be diagnosed before I was given the devastating diagnosis of pleural mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is on the increase, but knowledge about the disease sadly isn’t!
“It has taken a while to accept that this is really happening to me, especially as I am just 40 years old, newly married, and blessed with two adorable young sons and a lovely young stepdaughter.
Why Sue and Emily-Jane are supporting MesoUK and Asbestos Support Central England
“I will be eternally thankful to these two particular charities, Mesothelioma UK and Asbestos Support Central England, who have been a wonderful source of help and support during my journey. I was absolutely terrified when I received my ‘terminal’ diagnosis but the support group has contributed massively towards how I’m dealing with this.
“Your kind sponsorship donations will not only go towards helping raise awareness of this rare type of cancer, which is slowly on the increase but also enable further desperately needed research and development to continue.”
If you want to support the challenge and donate to Sue and Emily-Jane…
To follow Sue’s fundraising efforts, visit https://givestar.io/gs/the-broken-ones.
To donate to Emily-Jane, visit https://givestar.io/gs/hallow-12-parish-challenge