Mark’s mum
Mark’s mum, Valerie or “Bobo”, was a qualified nursery nurse, who after bringing up her own three
children, then ran a local nursery before helping with the local Riding for the Disabled. She was also a great supporter of Dr Barnados and Save The Children charities.
She was a country girl at heart, she was never happier than when walking (often accompanied by the family’s dogs) in the Oxfordshire countryside and around my sister’s farm. In her final years that walking was curtailed. Instead she and my father, Bob, would host the family in their garden, which they lovingly tended, occasionally challenging visitors to the odd game of croquet.
I cannot remember Bobo ever being ill. When I was about 8 she had her appendix removed, but other than that she never went to see a doctor. Of course Dad, a consultant pathologist, would have been on hand! However about 18 months before she died she started to get a bloated stomach, a loss of appetite and tiredness. Eventually, after blood tests and a scan, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She spent the next 15 months in and out of the Churchill Hospital: having a first course of chemotherapy, then surgery, a few months’ respite, and then the commencement of a second course of chemotherapy, which had to be terminated as her body was unable to take any more. The surgeon and oncology team at the Churchill explored all the options, but the disease was, by then, too far established and a palliative approach was adopted. She died on Christmas Eve 2012, aged 74.
Phil’s mum
My mum, Sue, had all the classic symptoms of ovarian cancer: the bloated feeling in her tummy, little or no appetite, tenderness in her pelvis and yet the system seemed to demand that she be tested for anything and everything else it could possibly be first. As a result mum was in and out of hospital during which time, as a result of Covid, no-one was able to visit her. As someone who loved nothing more than to be outside with her family and friends, mum hated every moment of it. Unfortunately, by the time of her diagnosis, the cancer was too far advanced and there was nothing more to be done. She died during Covid in November 2020 aged 79.
My mum was a passionate walker. She recce’d routes and led walks for the Ramblers, checked that footpaths were clear and organised local walks to help people return to health from illness and injury. In doing so, she made many friends and had a hugely positive impact on the lives of a great many people. Despite Covid restrictions and the pouring rain, her funeral was attended not only by her close family but the route to her graveside was lined by a huge number of her friends from the Ramblers and the Holiday Fellowship.
The Challenge
In 853CE the then future king, Alfred the Great, travelled from Winchester to Rome when he was just 4 years old. We aim to follow in his footsteps.
Like our mothers’, we are both keen walkers, and any given weekend can be found out in the hills. Mark roaming the South Downs and the Sussex countryside and Phil up in the Lake District.
My wife, Jo and I (Mark), are fortunate to have a home in Tuscany and the route of the Via Francigena passes close by our house. Over the years we have walked a number of the local sections with our two children. During these trips, the idea of walking the whole Way started to nag away at me, but it was only after losing my mum that the idea of walking it in her memory came to me. When I heard that Phil’s mum had also died of ovarian cancer, I felt I had to ask him if he would join me. Phil felt The Walk seemed like a fitting tribute to his mum and hopefully will be something she would have approved of.
Starting on Good Friday (7th April) 2023, we plan to set off from Winchester on the Pilgrims’ Way taking St Swithun’s Way to Farnham and from there along the North Downs to Canterbury where we shall pick up the Via Francigena, an ancient pilgrims’ route, through France into Switzerland, over the Alps via the Grand St Bernard Pass to Italy and then to Rome. It is a walk of over 2,200km and (all going well!) will take us approximately three months.
How they are getting on
So far, over 89 days we have walked more than 2484 km, we have climbed more than 38,200 metres and descended more than 37,882 metres.
I have gone through two sets of boots and Phil through one with another pair at the end of their days. We have walked through England, France, Switzerland and almost half of Italy. We should be in Rome/the Vatican City within 5 days.
We have been as high as almost 2,500 metres in freezing snow and over 37 degrees in almost 100% humidity, but we are almost there!
The Eve Appeal does utterly invaluable work to raise awareness of the risks of gynaecological cancers and to support people who are affected by them. Our hope is that by helping to raise awareness of the charity more women will get the early diagnosis that is crucial in saving lives.
You can support Mark and Phil on their walk by donating on this link.