Check out Alex's Blog (a fellow trekker)

Alex now has her blog running. Check it out for more photographs and stories of our fundraising!

http://alexpurcell.blogspot.com/

Pictures of Alex and I in stocks at the Ball

We raised £35.10 for Save the Children.

Trek Training Weekend in Crowden

This weekend I spent in the Peak District with some of my colleagues and some other fundraisers training for treks. Please find pictures of our weekend attached.



The team from RB: Madeleine, Anand, Chris, Seema, Mark and Alex and Emma from Save the Children who will be trekking with us in India.



Alex and I on Saturday climbing up Black Hill taking a short break!



The climb at the start of the walk.



Chris, Anand and Mark still smiling in the rain.



Seema's reaction to discovering that we will not have a steep climb at the start of Sunday's walk!

Mark & Ali - 26th July 2007

Nothing to do with Save the Children but here is a photograph of my brother and his wife on their wedding day!

Munro Pictures from May bank holiday week

Finally managed to get some photographs onto my blog. These are the pictures from Mark and my week in the Highlands in May. They are all of the Mamores - the first two are from the ring of Steall - a fantastic walk with 4 Munros.

Reckitt Benckiser Summer Ball for Save the Children

On the 10th of August we held the 2007 Reckitt Benckiser Summer ball in aid of Save the children. It was a great success and great fun - still adding up how much money we have raised but thought that I'd share a rare picture of Mark and I in formal dress!

We had 3 main fundraising events as part fo the ball
- a very successful raffle where every prize was donated
- photographs for £5 a go with a portion going to Save the Children
- Alex and I went into stocks at the end of the evening when we hoped that everyones aim would be affected by the wine!

All 3 were fun and a success. See an earlier post regarding the stocks.
The photograph is a scanned version of the one that we bought.

Training Weekend in Peak District

Next weekend Alex and I are off to the Peak district - Crowden to be precise - for a training weekend organised by the company that have organised our trek in India. We should get to meet some of the other people that are going on the Trek from the UK and have a pleasant weekend in the hills too.

I have also replaced my camera that was stolen so should have some pictures to share when I get back!

Indian Visa received

On Friday I received my Indian visa which was the last hurdle to cross before my trip. All I hope for is that I can raise more money for Save the Children and I don't get an injury before going.

Stocks at Summer Ball raise £35.10

picture to follow!!

Alex and I got wet to raise more money for Save the Children at the 2007 Reckitt Benckiser Summer Ball but placing our hands and heads into stocks and inviting people to throw sponges at us for £1 a shot or £2 for 3.

Good fun and didn't hurt at all!

Presents from Shemel & Sue

The placement students that I had working with me this past year left on Friday. As a leaving gift they gave me a journal for my trip to India and a photo album for the pictures that I take! I had been intending to get a journal to record my trip in so it was an excellent choice of present. I will copy the highlights onto my blog when I return!

I also really enjoy art so will use the journal to sketch in when I'm away.

A huge thank-you to Sue and Shemel and best of luck back at University

2 days to the Ball!

Only 2 days to go until the Reckitt Benckiser Summer Ball for Save the Children. Most things are ready and the weather forecast is good - we are hoping for excellent weather so that people can enjoy the garden at the Ramada hotel while sipping champagne and watching the circus entertainments before dinner - if you are coming turn up early to get the most out of the evening!

Great Yorkshire Run

I decided today that I needed some more motivation to keep me training for the Trek so have entered the Great Yorkshire Run. This takes place in Sheffield on the 9th of September. It is a 10k race. My first training run will be tonight! When I was marathon fit this sort of distance seems very easy but from experience it is a different type of challenge - rather than stamina it is about running faster for a shorter distance.

£1.89 from well behaved student swear box

The students in NTG started a swear box for Save the Children which has raised £1.89. This can only mean that they are very well behaved!

Many thanks to you all (it's their last day today!)

Madeleine

Toilet Blocks raise £7.41 for Save the Children!

Thank-you to Mike and to NTG for donating 20p per block for left over samples from Mike's home use trial. It is amazing how much money can be raised from toilet blocks!

Indian Visa Application

Today I posted off my application for an Indian visa so am grounded in the UK until it returns!

Save the Children Project - Angola video

To see a video of how the money you have raised is being spent in Angola go to:

http://www.save100000lives.com/

and select download video in the orange box. You can also find out more about the projects and the trek on this website.

Save the Children Project - Angola

Here is an example project that your money is helping in Angola. This has been taken from a Save the Children/Reckitt Benckiser newsletter so is an actual project that your money has paid for!

Antonia Kangue is a ‘soba’, a traditional chief of the village of San Jose, Huamba province.
Antonia is helping with a demonstration to his village of how to use mosquito nets and the importance of using them to prevent malaria. As the leader of the village for the last 18 years,

Antonia knows about the devastating effects of malaria on his community.

He knows that mosquito nets are the best ways to prevent mosquito bites.
‘I am lucky and so happy to see Save the Children. Before, we had no money to get the mosquito nets and children were getting sick, I am so happy and people in my village are so grateful for these mosquito nets’.

Reckitt Benckiser Global Challenge 2007

Thanks to the Save 100,000 lives campaign, children of San Jose village also received vitamin A supplements, which are essential for their healthy development. Mothers bring their babies and toddlers to receive their vitamin A pill, before they get their mosquito net to ensure that no children miss out.

8 Munros in 3 Days!

Mark and I went north after my brother's wedding to go walking. We managed to climb 8 munros in 3 days - excellent preparation for the Himalayan trek.

For anyone who doesn't know a Munro is a Scottish mountain above 3000 feet (915m) and most of them start around sea level!

The first day was mountain bike assisted - Mount Keen, the furthest east Munro. There was a long track in so well worth taking the bikes for. Our second and biggest day was up Lochnagar and around the ridge to Broad Cairn collecting another 5 - the most we've done in a day so far. With stiff legs we climbed another two out of Glen Doll on Sunday before heading back south.

Sorry - no photographs though, as the people at US homeland security decided to help themselves to my camera when I was returning from a business trip to the states. I will be buying a replacement before the Trek so there will be plently of pictuire of India eventually!