Alexander Devine trustee takes on London Marathon

On 3^rd October 2021, Alexander Devine trustee and Managing Director of Connor, the people and change business that is based in Henley, will be taking on the London Marathon to help raise vital funds for Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service.

Fraser Silvey, who has never run a marathon before, was motivated to push himself out of his comfort zone and take on the biggest challenge of his life in order to raise vital funds for his local children’s hospice service, Alexander Devine.

Fraser is hoping to raise more than £3,000, which could help fund eight full days of care for a seriously-ill local child at the charity’s hospice in Maidenhead.

Fraser’s marathon journey has been long and drawn out with his training for the London Marathon starting nearly two years ago due to pandemic and cancellation of last year’s race. With the finish line now nearly in sight, Frasert told us how much Alexander Devine means to him and how he is proud to champion its mission to reach out to every child and family locally that needs it:

“Alexander Devine holds a very special place in my heart. I have been a trustee of the charity for the past four years, but before that I was supporting its journey and development of its service for so many years.

It’s an absolute privilege and humbling to work and support in some small way the inspirational people at Alexander Devine. Everything about the setup is first class, the amazing staff, the amazing facilities and the amazing children and their families.

It is common that people associate hospices with end of life care only, and whilst that is the case with adult hospices, the vital support Alexander Devine provides to children and their families is so diverse and can last years, and in some instances a decade or more. End of life care is just a small part of what they do. They help families that are facing challenges most of us could not imagine, and give them opportunities to make precious memories for as long as they have.

Every time I visit Alexander Devine, I am struck by the laughter, the smiling faces, the positivity and the overwhelming sense of fun and happiness. It really is a special place. In common with most organisations in the charity sector, the last year or so has created a tough and challenging environment to raise the vital funds required to run a children’s hospice service like Alexander Devine. The vital lifeline it provides is free of charge to families but it costs around £1.8 million a year just to maintain its current level of care. Over the past year the demand for Alexander Devine’s service has grown and families have needed its support more than ever.”

CEO and Co-Founder, Fiona Devine, praised Fraser for his ongoing support and taking on the London Marathon for the charity:

“As a trustee, Fraser is one of our unsung volunteering heroes at Alexander Devine. For years he has dedicated his time and expertise for free in order to support the work we do and help us grow and develop our children’s hospice service. His passion and commitment for our charity is clearly evident by taking on this epic challenge and we could not be more grateful.

We know how tough it has been for him with his training prolonged due to the pandemic, but we have no doubt Fraser will absolutely smash it and we could not be prouder. We will be cheering him on all the way and on behalf of everyone at Alexander Devine we want to wish him good luck and a massive thank you!”

To find out more about Fraser’s challenge or to sponsor him, please visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Fraser-Silvey2