James and Kirsty have their eyes on the finish line Posted on July 29, 2015March 14, 2018 by Carly du Toit “ For us, this year is about not letting anything come between us and our dreams – this was the advice my Dad, Mick always gave me.” This September, James Robson and fiancé Kirsty Donovan will be heading to Europe to run in the Berlin Marathon. James has been a dedicated ACRF supporter for many years. “While my Dad was receiving chemotherapy treatment back in the UK, I felt like there wasn’t a lot I could do from 12,000 miles away, so I decided to raise as much money as possible to help eradicate this disease.” “For years I ran in his honour. I ran Iron Man challenges, half marathons and more; running to prevent the sadness, raising money to give every step more meaning in the hopes that Dad might survive his cancer.” “After three long years of fighting brain tumours, Dad lost his battle with the disease and passed away. I was on a plane home to him as soon as I received the phone call and was able to make it in time to say goodbye. It will be almost a year but it still feels like yesterday.” “Now I am running in his memory. The ACRF is very close to our hearts and running to raise funds is a way for us to take on a personal challenge at the same time as hitting back at cancer.” With the help of generous family and friends the couple have raised an astounding $25,000. James and Kirsty continually strive to move onwards and upwards. With each event they participate in, they continue to challenge both their physical and mental endurance. “People all over the world are fighting for their lives and they have no rest, so we’ve decided to carry on going to really make a difference and help more people.” Already this year, they took on the Sydney Half Marathon. “Together we hope to keep going for the full 42km until we reach the Brandenburg Gate.” We wish James and Kirsty the best of luck, and thank them for their ongoing support. Click here to show your support for James and Kirsty. Share your story
One nutter takes on the Americas Posted on March 16, 2015February 25, 2018 by Carly du Toit For many cancer survivors, fundraising to give back to cancer research is often about making the most of a challenge or adventure. Testicular cancer survivor, David Melville, is using this very approach. Having shown cancer who’s boss, David is now grabbing life with a solo motorcycling adventure from Canada all the way to the southern-most tip of South America. He set off on August 19,2014 from Vancouver, Canada, heading south to Tierra Del Fuego Argentina and planned to stop in to plenty of cities, fundraising as he went. Starting a cheeky blog called One Nutter, David has documented his journey so far; telling tales of his epic adventure and how it all began. David said, “Since [going into remission] I’ve done some basic social work talking to other guys who’d just been diagnosed, but I’ve always wanted to do a bit more to give back.” David was only 22 years old when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer and after several operations and treatments was, thankfully, given the all clear. David hopes that this ride will help raise some funds to help give back to all those people who helped him through his cancer journey – family, the medical professionals and the researchers behind the scenes. David has already most generously raised over $1,700 for cancer research and, having just reached Costa Rica, is having the time of his life seeing some amazing sites and raising awareness along the way. We’d like to thank David for taking on this epic challenge in support of cancer research in Australia and wish him the very best of luck for the remainder of his journey. If you would like to keep up with David’s trip Down to Argentina, visit his blog or support him by donating here. Share your story
