Longridge students sign off with £5,000 gift

School pupils invariably leave a mark when they head to pastures new, but Longridge School captains have also left behind a very special financial boost to a charity close to their hearts.

When former Longridge student, Sam, was diagnosed with cancer last summer, not long after they had returned from a school trip to Borneo, his friends rallied round. They visited him regularly as he underwent chemotherapy treatment in Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary over many weeks, and they pledged to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust, when they saw how much the charity supported him through the ordeal.

The end result was that Sam has made a full recovery and his friends raised more than £5,000. That came with some pain, it has to be said, as the students took part in the Tough Mudder challenge, a 15km endurance race under, through and over a series of obstacles, including freezing water, mud pits, climbing walls, barbed wire and even fire.

“And it wasn’t actually 15k!” said chief organiser and Longridge School Captain, Lottie. “It turned out to be 17km and those last two kilometres … well, we certainly earned our money!

“It was great to be honest and we really enjoyed the whole experience. We absolutely smashed our original target and it’s so nice to be able to give back to the wider Longridge community. We’re all so happy.”

Curd, Lottie and Campbell hand over the hard-earned cheque to Charlotte from the Teenage Cancer Trust

School friends rally round to back fundraisers

She was joined by her fellow School Captain Curd, as well as Campbell and friend Antonia, who was part of the Head Team at Kelso High School, while a number of current and former students helped with other fundraising activities in and out of school – including a mud run in school which was a huge amount of fun and raised over £500 itself, and a 24-hour static cycling relay over 295 miles.

Lottie added: “I think the Teenage Cancer Trust is such an unsung charity in the sense that so few people of my age certainly are aware of it, but they are there for everyone of our age going through cancer, and there are a lot more than you maybe realise.

“It’s a phenomenal charity, and it deserves so much more praise than it really gets, and a priority in our roles as school captains has been to give back not just to Longridge, but also to its wider community this year, so we are really pleased to raise over £5,000.

Thanks extended to staff and pupils

“We would like to thank everyone who supported us along this journey as we are so grateful to be able to give back to a charity which has given so much to our community. We would especially like to thank Mr Lee, Mrs Targonski, Mr Massie and Miss Smith and the rest of the Sixth Form for making the in-school mud run.”

Charlotte Gilbert of the Teenage Cancer Trust, attended Longridge Towers’ Founders Day to collect the cheque. She told us: “Cancer is tough, but Teenage Cancer Trust’s work puts young people in the best possible place, physically, mentally and emotionally, for their cancer treatment and beyond.

“We do that by funding specialist nurses, youth workers and hospital wards within the NHS, so that young people with cancer get the sensitive, individual care and support they need at a unique and critical life stage.

“But we’re dependent on donations for this vital work, which is why we’re so very grateful to Lottie, Curd and their friends for their support.”

About Teenage Cancer Trust

Every few hours, a young person in the UK hears the words “you have cancer”.
Teenage Cancer Trust is the only UK charity providing specialised nursing care and expert youth support for young people with cancer.
The charity supports anyone diagnosed with cancer aged 13-24, and their loved ones too.
Teenage Cancer Trust funds specialist nurses, youth workers and hospital wards within the NHS, so young people with cancer get the sensitive, individual care and support they need at this unique and critical life stage.
Teenage Cancer Trust is a registered charity: 1062559 (England & Wales), SC039757 (Scotland).
For more details, visit: teenagecancertrust.org