Colleague Support 2023

Eva’s Challenge for Diabetes UK

Our Financial Crime Officer, Eva Frost, participated in the Swim22 challenge to help raise money for Diabetes UK. Swim22 is a challenge where participants had 3 months (22nd March – 22nd June) to complete a 22 mile swim (for context, this is the length of The English Channel between England and France). To complete this challenge, Eva had to swim 1416 lengths of a 25m pool.

When talking about her story, Eva explained:

“A few people in my life have been affected by diabetes and I myself am at risk of developing diabetes due to Polycystic Ovaries Syndrome. The best way to lower this risk is by losing weight, being active and following a healthy diet. So, to achieve this I challenged myself to swim (as this is my favourite form of exercise) the length of The English Channel and raise money for Diabetes UK. I decided to take part in this challenge to contribute towards a healthier me, and a better future for people living with diabetes.

Upon completing the challenge in June, I was presented with a medal by my husband and son who came to support me on my last pool visit. I managed to raise £380 which I am delighted with. I have thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and will definitely carry on swimming”.

Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care London Bridge Walk

In March, five of our colleagues completed the Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care London Bridges Walk on a wet Sunday morning. The walk which is a family-friendly day out takes in some of the capital’s most iconic bridges and landmarks. The walk- which in total was 10 miles – started at the Peace Pagoda in Battersea Park and finished at Tower Bridge. The route took our team over 12 bridges including Westminster Bridge, the Millennium Bridge and London Bridge. Our team did amazingly well in miserable conditions and managed to raise £835 in total.

Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care Colour Fun Run

In June, our Senior Compliance Officer, Emma Brown, and our Tring Branch Manager, Gill Pearce, played a key role in the Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care Colour Fun Run. Taking place in Aldenham Country Park in Borehamwood, our colleagues were on hand as marshals to man the route, as well as throw paint at the willing runners.

Talking in relation to the day, Emma comments:

“I arrived at Aldenham Country Park just after 9.30am, my partners in crime Gill Pearce and her daughter were already there enjoying the shade in the volunteer tent, on what turned out to be a glorious summer’s day. We were shown the way to our little ‘paint station’ which was essentially a small folding table in the middle of a field a few minutes away from the main event tents and got set up ready to throw the colour powders at the runners.

With around 420 runners, there was a constant stream of runners and walkers for about 2 hours. They all came past us twice so the time passed really quickly, and before we knew it the race was over. The three of us had a lot of fun trying to make sure that everyone from the fastest runners to the littlest ones being carried on shoulders all had a fair coating of paint, and the kids of course got the colours they wanted most!

A young lad playfully taunted Gill saying, “you can’t catch me”, so she rose to the challenge and ended up chasing him halfway round the field with a cup of powder paint in each hand. Final Score: Gill 2 Boy 0. He got coated! We too were also covered in paint to add to the fun. A fantastic fun day was had by all with the fundraising total for the event being just over £21,500”.

Stand Up to Cancer Walkies Challenge

During the month of April, our Compliance Monitoring Officer, Amanda Andrews, took part in the Stand Up To Cancer Walkies Challenge. Amanda succeeded in walking 60 miles throughout the month with her lovely miniature poodle pup Freddie to help raise much needed funds for lifesaving cancer research, a cause close to Amanda’s heart. Through colleagues, family and friends support, Amanda managed to raise a brilliant total of £260.

Rudolph Run

On a soggy Sunday in early December our Branch Manager for Harpenden and Radlett, Louise Wilson, participated in the St Albans Rudolph Run to help raise money for Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care. With antlers on and faces decorated in paint, Louise, alongside her children, husband and niece completed the 1.5km gallop around the backstreets of St Albans. In total, Louise managed to raise a fantastic £250.

Macmillan Coffee and Cake event

In late September, we hosted a Macmillan Cancer Support coffee and cake event at our Head Office. This event was an opportunity for colleagues to get together and raise money for a great cause, all whilst enjoying some delicious food, and bonding over some fun games. Games included ‘Guess the famous baker’ and the eagerly anticipated ‘Who’s that Harpenden BS baby?’. Colleagues kindly volunteered to submit baby photos which were then put on display in the office. It was definitely harder than many anticipated, but a lot of fun too.

The winners managed to guess a total of 15 out of 23. Some amazing homemade bakes were brought in including, brownies, ginger cake, lemon drizzle cake, sausage rolls, Battenburg and more! Across our branches and head office, colleagues raised a brilliant £354.29 for Macmillan Cancer Support.

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Take a look at Issue 1 Part 1 of Mutual here.