​A touching story from Ian Alexander, one of our Chester le Street members

A touching story from Ian Alexander one of our Chester le Street members!! Please help him raise as much money as he can for this fantastic charity.

On September 11th he ran the Great North Run in memory of his partner Julie. He is raising funds for the Freeman Heart and Lung Transplant Unit.

Julie had a rare condition called Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. In 2019 her condition deteriorated and her only hope of survival became a double lung transplant.

In early 2020 Julie was assessed at the Freeman Heart and Lung Transplant Unit and she made it onto the list for an urgent transplant.

Ian says: “We were very hopeful of a positive outcome as Julie had always faced her illness with great determination and spirit.

Tragically, in March 2020 Covid came along, the country ended up in lockdown and the donor program was impacted by the lack of suitable donors. We were isolated at home in lockdown and her condition deteriorated until we ran out of time……Julie passed away on April 18th 2020 despite the efforts of myself, Julie’s daughter Calley and Julie’s sister Glynis.

Although Julie wasn’t one of the lucky ones to receive a transplant, the FHLTA changes the lives of so many by making something positive happen out of tragedy and as such they are a very worthy cause.

Last year I was struggling a bit especially when the dark nights came along so I joined Bannatyne Health Club at Chester Le Street and this has had a very positive impact on me.”

You can see Ian’s JustGiving page by clicking here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Ian-Alexander32....