November...

With winter beginning to set in the time has come to start into some serious pool training. It is also time to start bringing all of the l;ogistics of making a Channel Swim together. One of the things that alot of people choose to combine their swim with is raising money for a chosen charity. I had always intended to do this but was having trouble picking out the charity that I wanted to support. Well, on the morning of Thursday 6th November 2008 my mind was made up for me.

On the 1st October my Grandmother was informed that she had cancer that had spread throughout her body and that there was no treatment available. The only thing to do now was to bring her home and make her as comfortable as possible. There were a few people who this would not have been possible without. My Grandfather, her husband of 44yrs who gave her 24hr attention, my mother, who was able to understand and administer all of the medication, our family doctor, Dr. O'Grady, who came at least twice every day, and the Irish Cancer Society, who's Night Nursing service proved to be invaluable.

The Irish Cancer Society is funded totally by voluntary donations and receive no government funding. They are committed to finding new ways of preventing and curing cancer and providing the best care possible for those who are terminally ill. By being in the house at night, the night nurse gives the family a chance to have some rest and are there to support everyone when death is near.

I am swimming the Channel in memory of my Grandmother, who was looking forward emmensly to the event, and to raise funds for this worthy organisation. You can see their website by following this link: Irish Cancer Society, and you can visit my fundraising page at http://www.mycharity.ie/event/ec4cancer. All donations made on the MyCharity.ie website are very secure and are very much appreciated.

Thanks for your support.