OUR CHARITIES
David and Richard's aim is to raise as much as possible for charities close to their hearts, in their native Yorkshire.
Maggie's is a charity providing free cancer support to people with cancer, their family, and friends. Maggie's offers free emotional and practical support for people with cancer and those affected by cancer. Maggie’s has now grown into a network of centres built beside NHS hospitals across the UK.
Every Maggie’s is thoughtfully designed to be calming and welcoming; a place to escape from the clinical environment of the hospital. The experts in centre include Cancer Support Specialists, Clinical Psychologists, Benefits Advisors and sessional staff.
Maggie's Yorkshire is located on the grounds of St James's Hospital in Leeds, The award winning centre is a place where people can deal with the challenges that cancer brings. Where people can feel at home, inspired and valued. The workshops, courses, one-to-one, and group support help people to change the way they live with cancer.
Maggie's focuses on the things that really make a difference, like money worries, help with stress and low mood, managing side-effects and relationship and family support. The support has been shown to improve physical and emotional wellbeing and to help people take control when cancer turns life upside down.
Like many charities FoAM was born out of personal tragedy. In March 2002 Fiona and Rodger Martin lost their son Alfie born full term but due to medical negligence needing specialist transportation to Leeds teaching hospital for critical care. No transportation was available and after a tortuous wait Alfie was transferred but sadly died.
Fiona wanted to honour her son by improving the transport of critically ill children throughout Yorkshire. From this desire a committee of volunteers rallied to support Fiona and the charity was formed.
Twenty years later the charity has raised over half a million pounds funding life-saving equipment for Yorkshires sickest babies.
After the purchase of the much needed transportation equipment, the charity has become the biggest single contributor to neonatal care at the Leeds teaching hospitals. Recent purchases include state of the art heart monitoring equipment, specialist incubators and mechanical breathing support ventilators.
The list of future requirements is daunting but the volunteer committee are determined to continue in their efforts to ensure other parents don't have to suffer the tragic loss of a child.