Alexander’s Nurse Vicki takes on 100km Jurassic Coast challenge

On Saturday 22^nd and Sunday 23^rd May, Vicki Jepson, who is one of our amazing Alexander’s Nurses, took on the mammoth 100km Jurassic Coast Challenge in a bid to raise vital funds for our charity.

Vicki has worked for our children’s hospice service for the past two years and provides specialist care and support for children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions, and their families, across the whole of Berkshire and surrounding counties.

Inspired by her walks over lockdown, Vicki decided to sign up for a tough challenge that would help her raise some much-needed funds for Alexander Devine, which relies nearly entirely on donations and fundraising to run its service. During the pandemic most of our usual fundraising events and activities had to be postponed or cancelled which has had a significant impact on the charity

Commenting on her tough challenge and the support that motivated her, Vicki said:

“I see first-hand how much of a positive impact our children’s hospice service has on the lives of the children and families we support. But none of what we do would be possible without donations and fundraising, so I wanted to do my bit and take on a challenge that would help raise some vital funds.

I knew taking on 100km would be a massive challenge but I was not quite prepared for quite how hard it would be. Over the weekend I seemed to experience every terrain and weather condition possible – mud, sand, lots of hills, wind and of course rain! It was really tough going but I was so blown away by people’s messages of support and generosity. They definitely kept me going and made me determined to finish.”

Thanks to the generosity of her supporters, Vicki managed to smash her fundraising target and raise over £1,900, which would help her provide over 43 hours of specialist care and support to local children and families.

Helen Bennett, Director of Care at Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service, said:

“We are all so proud of Vicki’s efforts and the amazing amount of money she has raised. A big thank you to everyone that supported her with this enormous challenge, both on the day and throughout her training.

Vicki’s fundraising is such a wonderful example of how we all work together at Alexander Devine to make sure we can continue to provide the specialist care and support that children and families need.”