Patients and service users from Pendleside Hospice are set to embark on a 35 mile journey together, to celebrate 35 years since the Hospice opened its doors to the Burnley and Pendle communities.

The challenge equates to roughly 80,000 steps, which will be tracked over the next six weeks, leading up to their brand-new event, The Great Pendleside Trek, which is now open for registration.

The circular ‘35 miles for 35 years’ endurance event, open to the public, will take place on Saturday, 9th September, starting and finishing at Pendleside Hospice. Participants will have the opportunity to take in some of Burnley and Pendle’s beautiful countryside, a route which has been carefully put together, thanks to The Sunnywood Project, in Bury.

The Great Pendleside Trek is an ideal challenge for hikers and runners, who want to work towards a fitness goal and it’s the perfect opportunity to raise funds for your local Hospice. If 35 miles is too far, you can opt for a 21 or 13 mile option too, which will be clearly signposted en-route.

For many patients and service users, being on their feet for too long is a huge challenge in itself, but when word got around about the Pendleside event, patients expressed an interest in getting involved. From this initial suggestion, The Great Pendleside Patient Trek evolved, and already, patients from across all areas of the Hospice; Inpatients Unit, Hospice at Home and Health, Wellbeing & Rehabilitation, are keen to get started!

Together, the patients are aiming to collectively walk 35 miles in the lead up to The Great Pendleside Trek. Whether it’s a few small solo steps, being guided around the Hospice gardens in their wheelchair, or needing to use a walking aid; each moment counts. Together, 80,000 steps, equivalent to 35 miles, will be counted up collectively, and like any sporting event, all patients and service users will receive a medal to mark the occasion.

Pendleside nurses, practitioners and volunteers will work together, supporting inpatients, Hospice at Home patients and day service users, with varying abilities and mobilities, to take part in our unique challenge.

Julia O’Neill, Pendleside Hospice’s Day Services and Family Support Manager, originally came up with the idea as something fun to do for day service users:

“Physically, there are barriers to taking part in the Trek, but mentally, many of the patients and service users are strong-willed and determined to be a part of something special, and let’s not forget – fun!

“Creating an event solely for our patients and service users gives them independence, a sense of pride, gets them up & active and allows them to accomplish something they may not have thought was achievable.

“It’s a great way to celebrate the Hospice’s 35th anniversary and bring everyone together; staff members, volunteers, patients, service users, and carers too!”

The official launch date for The Great Pendleside Patient Trek is Monday, 31st July. If you wish to show your support and get behind our event, you can donate to their JustGiving page: www.justgiving.com/campaign/great-pendleside-patient-trek

Pendleside Hospice simply couldn’t survive without the generosity of local communities. The charity expects to incur running costs of around £5.5 million over the next 12 months with approx. 22% of these costs being funded through NHS grants, which means £4.3 million needs to be raised from other sources.

Helen McVey, Chief Executive of Pendleside Hospice added:

“It’s fantastic that our patients, service users and supporters are getting involved and supporting the Hospice for Pendleside’s very special 35th birthday year. We are very grateful for all their support as it enables us to keep delivering our services to those who need our care.”

If you’d like to get involved and you have your own niche idea to raise funds for Pendleside Hospice, they’d love to hear it! Could you walk to 35 trig points over the next 3 months? Or maybe you want to challenge yourself to 35,000 steps everyday for 35 days? There are many possibilities for you to get active and raise valuable funds for Pendleside Hospice, by joining the ‘35 for 35’ campaign.

Get in touch with the fundraising team now to get your fundraising pack – fundraising@pendleside.org.uk.

Alternatively, join their upcoming endurance event. Sign up to The Great Pendleside Trek today: www.pendleside.org.uk/great-pendleside-trek.

For more member news, click here.