About 500 people turned out in Mote Park, Maidstone, on Sunday 6 September for Sarcoma UK’s Rare But Real walk, raising more than £25,000 for the bone and soft tissue cancer charity, and making it the largest event the charity has ever held.
The walk brought together families, local supporters and people affected by sarcoma for a day that combined fundraising with awareness-raising for a disease that remains little known despite its impact. Sarcomas are rare cancers which affect both bone and soft tissues in the body. They account for less than 1% of all cancer diagnoses and are often misdiagnosed or diagnosed too late.
The scale of Sunday’s walk was largely down to Adel Murphy and her wife Georgie. Georgie is terminally ill with sarcoma. Adel and Georgie mobilised family, friends and the wider community, both in person and on social media, who came out in full force under the banner ‘Georgie’s Sarcoma Warriors’. The group raised more than £18,000 of the total of £25,000 for the walk. An additional £530.71 came from donations made on the day.
Speaking at the event, Adel said the day was about celebrating Georgie and showing that living with sarcoma ‘doesn’t need to be misery’. She thanked everyone who had shared the couple’s story and helped bring people to the park, and said the money raised would make a real difference to people living with the disease. She was joined on the walk by Georgie on WhatsApp from her bed at the hospice where she is receiving palliative care.
Kerry Reeves-Kneip, Sarcoma UK’s Director of Fundraising and Communications, said seeing so many people wearing the event T-shirt was emotional, and praised the walk’s organising committee – Adel, Georgie, Ellie, Sophie, Jenna and Chloe – for making the day happen. She said raising awareness of sarcoma was just as important as the money raised in the hope that more people will get checked and be diagnosed earlier.
Mayor of Maidstone, Cllr Brian Clark, welcomed the event to Mote Park and pledged the borough’s support in helping to spread the charity’s message.
Cheryl Baker, famous from her careers in music and television, cut a ribbon to launch the event. She said she had known little about sarcoma before Sunday and called for greater awareness, research funding and media coverage of the disease.
Sarcoma UK is the only charity in the UK focused solely on improving outcomes for people affected by it through research, information and support.
