Jubilant June

Last week’s Flitch Way Walk was a massive success, bringing in over 130 people. The weather behaved well, and nobody found themselves completely drenched in rain. Just sweat, then!

When one events ends, another one begins. Coming up on June 19^th, we’ve got the Macmillan 10K Fun-Run, which is still in need of volunteers, so if you’re interested in being a part of something big, call 020 7840 4867.

Are you running low on fundraising ideas? Now what with the lack of public holidays, it may be difficult to think up events to raise money for. We’ve put a few together to get you started for June, bearing in mind that this month’s focus is on giving thanks to those that have helped or inspired us, as sometimes the message can say more than the money. See if you can conjure up any more!

1)       Send the Biggest Thank You

        Why not get techie and declare your gratitude to the world by adding a message to biggestthankyou.org.uk? It’s a new website for our centenary year that’s dedicated purely to public thank yous. Head there today, upload your photo and let the thanking begin.

2)      Get Arty

Get your creative juices flowing and find a decorative way to say thanks. It could be as intricate as a cross-stitched, framed thank you note (you crafty person, you), or as easy as a doodle to pin up on a desk. Whatever it is, it will be utterly unique.

3)      Say It with an eCard

 It's free to send a Macmillan eCard and it’s sure to put a smile on your recipient’s face. What's more, if you choose to make a donation when you send one, you'll be helping support people affected by cancer too. Everyone’s a winner. Sending an eCard is easy – just head to macmillan.org.uk/donate/ecards.

If you have any suggestions, or would just like to contact us regarding anything at all, call 01245345280 or give us a tweet at @MacmillanAnglia!

Having a Ball...

…Literally! On June 10^th from 6.30pm to 1am, the “Semi Dangerous Sporting Club” are holding their third Summer Ball at the Fennes Bocking, this time to celebrate our Centenary year. In the past two years alone, the SDSC have raised a phenomenal £27,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support. They’re going to make an even greater effort this time to beat previous years’ totals, and ask all who attend to help by either bringing raffle prizes, bottles of wine or simply sponsoring one of the events that will be taking place during the evening. They have a huge range of events that you can choose to sponsor, from the magician, to the auction and there’s even a wine festival! Tickets are priced at £65 each, inclusive of a three course dinner, wine and coffee. If you’re interested, phone either Les Ely on 01376528217, or Alan Rider on 01376345667 – but hurry before tickets run out!

Macmillan Cancer Support would be nothing without your contributions, whether it’s through financial help or voluntary work. There are also people behind the scenes over at our offices who make sure everything runs smoothly – they are the backbone of what we do. We’d like to therefore give a huge welcome to a few new people joining the Macmillan family: Carol Fenton (the newly appointed General Manager of the LASER region), Rachel David (Fundraising Manager for Sussex), Luke Whitehead (Social Media Officer), Jill Corbyn (Involvement Co-ordinator for Kent, Surrey and Sussex) and Victoria Barker (Fundraising Support Assistant in the Essex Fundraising Office).

We would also like to bid farewell to those about to leave us: Phillip Wong (Fundraising Support Assistant for Hertfordshire) and the lovely Lorna McKay who is on maternity leave. Good luck to you both!

Finally, the Macmillan Cancer Support 10K Fun Run is being held in Regents Park on June 19^th and we’re looking for plenty of volunteers to come along and help out! If you’d like to be a Marshall for the day, or simply be there to cheer the runners on for moral support, contact Holli And Hayley on 020 7840 4867.

See you there…

Fundraising in the Sun

It’s been almost a month since the Royal Wedding took place, but it feels like everything only happened a couple of days ago. It was the perfect opportunity for fundraising, too – did you or anybody you know help support Macmillan through a Royal Wedding street party?

The Essex team went on a


fundraising roadtrip around all of the different Marks and Spencer stores in the region. The folks at the M&S stores conjured up some amazing fundraising ideas that ranged from a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party in Southend to waxing the chest hairs of two male staff members in Thurrock! The amount that was raised in one whole day totalled to an absolutely phenomenal £17,000. Hats off (literally if you’re M&S in Southend) to everyone that got involved, we cannot thank you enough for your efforts.

The weather’s getting better; this June looks to be the perfect month for exploring the outdoors and basking in some sunshine. If you’re in the Essex area, have a go at doing the Flitch Way Walk in Braintree on the 12^th of June, all details are here: http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Fundraising/Inyourarea/England/Essex/Local_events/FlitchWayFamilyWalk.aspx. If you’re an avid swimmer and you live in the East of England, then the British Gas Great East Swim will be the perfect way to raise money, whilst doing something that you love during the British summertime! More info here: http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Fundraising/Swimmingevents/GreatEastSwim/BritishGasGreatEastSwim.aspx

Bring on fundraising in the sun! Plenty more events will be coming your way, so keep an eye out for any forthcoming updates you see on our Twitter or Facebook page.

Enlightening Info

The "Near Naked Man" campaign photo,
 as part of Male Cancer Awareness Week.

Four days ago, Male Cancer Awareness Week kicked off.  Over 37,000 men will be diagnosed with testicular, prostate or penile cancer in the UK alone. Now that’s a notable statistic. Awareness weeks like these are very important because when it comes to gender-specific conditions, there’s a high possibility that some people may shy away from approaching such sensitive issues or asking questions about them. We’re going to make sure that male cancers are addressed, with their symptoms recognised and that those directly affected by them, are supported. Please visit our cancer information pages to learn more about the causes, symptoms and treatments related to male cancer. Early detection could save a life – whether it’s your own or someone else’s in your family or circle of friends.

Testicular Cancer:  http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinformation/Cancertypes/Testes/Testicularcancer.aspx

Prostate Cancer: http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinformation/Cancertypes/Prostate/Prostatecancer.aspx

Penile Cancer: http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinformation/Cancertypes/Penis/Penilecancer.aspx

If you’re based in Norfolk and are looking for another fundraising event to add to your plan of action, then the Starlight Walk is the perfect choice to go for. It’s a 13 mile walk around Norwich which in previous years has raised a total of £200,000! What makes it even more special is that the route will be beautifully illuminated by both the stars and candlelight. The registration fee is £25, but absolutely no fraction of your donation will be pumped into administration costs, advertising or goody bags. It all goes to Macmillan. The walk itself is on the 24^th of June, so if you want to take part visit this page:  http://www.starlightwalknorwich.co.uk/

 

More fundraising is going to take place next week at The Chelmsford Star Cooperative, in the form of a fashion show!  On the 19^th of April at 6pm, people will be flocking to the Quadrant to check out the latest designs and garments that the department store has to offer. Tickets are just £5 but they’re selling fast; to get yours, just email events@chelmsfordstar.coop or call 01245490101. See you there!

 

We’re still looking for a volunteer who can hold up the trophy as a social networking champ and blogger. If you see yourself as a budding journalist, this is the perfect opportunity to hone your creative writing skills, as we’re looking for someone who can write well and navigate the internet with ease. Click here to go through the job specification and application details: https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0Byfjt0Lief3QZmZlYWI5NzEtOTU2ZC00ZDIyLThhMWMtOWZkMTA1ODA4YjUy&hl=en. We look forward to hearing from you.

Help us get racing...

We’re only four days away from The English Grand National, one of the world's most esteemed horse races. If you’re passionate about both horse-racing and fundraising, have a go at organising a Grand National Sweepstake for Macmillan, at home, work or at your local pub! Here’s a suggestion as to how you could do it:

1. In the week of the race, buy a newspaper which includes the names of all

the horses running. Cut the list of names into individual strips so each strip

contains one horse’s name, fold each strip up and put them into a container.

2. Ask your friends and colleagues to draw a strip out of the container.

You could also request that they make a suggested donation of £1 (no donation

necessary). Keep a note of which horse each individual draws. Entrants keep

hold of their slip.

3. Once the race is run, you can award the winner with a great prize,

as well as making a donation to help people affected by cancer.



Martin Rich



If cars are more your thing, then how do you fancy having your initials or club logo on a Lotus Evora GTE racing in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans? And how about helping support people with cancer at the same time? The awesome Martin Rich, one of the UK's leading non-professional sportscar racers, will be taking part in the prestigious Le Mans race for Macmillan Cancer Support on the 12^th of June, in memory of his father, the late Michael Rich. Just £1 will get your three initials on his car; a logo or picture on it will be £50. Simple! For more information, visit Martin’s Virgin Money page: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserProfilePage.action?userUrl=lemans. Check out his Facebook page too: http://www.facebook.com/LeMansMacmillan.

Lastly, for anyone living in Romford, the Romford Fundraising Group needs members! If you or someone you know has some spare time and would like to make a difference to someone’s life through local events, parties and the like, then please contact the Essex Fundraising Office on 01245 345280. Join us to support and improve the lives of people living with cancer.

Survived April Fool's?

We’re glad you support our latest idea to dye the River Thames Green. We weren’t too sure about it before as there weren’t too many green-dye wholesalers about. After a painstaking nationwide search, we finally found one situated in the heart of Glasgow: “Green me up, Scotty Ltd.” Our river colouring antics can now begin.

It’s a new month, and aside from the abundance of fundraising ideas you could relate to ‘April Fool’s Day’ (whatever that is…) this month is also home to Easter, so why not hold an event that credits it? You could:

·        Have a make and bake sale! Employees make Easter cakes and biscuits (hot-cross buns, simnel cake, chick-shaped biscuits, carrot cake) and sell them off in store for a suggested donation.

·        You could also create large easter baskets of donated gifts for grown ups and kids, then hold a raffle or silent auction for them (the baskets, not the kids).

Alternatively, you could go for a different option and choose to do something that raises Bowel Cancer Awareness – this month’s awareness topic. Try persuading everyone to come into work or school wearing at least one navy blue garment, then get them to donate £1. Bowel Cancer is the 3^rd most common cancer in women – but it can affect everyone. To get more facts on Bowel cancer and its types, you can visit this link: http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinformation/Cancertypes/Bowelcancer.aspx

Finally, calling all budding journalists, if you would like to write for Macmillan Anglia and have great research skills, then watch this space for some more information coming to you next week. We’re always happy to get new volunteers on board too, so if you would like to be part of Macmillan to help change lives for the better, give us a tweet (@MacmillanAnglia) or contact your local fundraising office.

It's Time to Jazz Things Up!

So many people have been getting vocal and proactive about this month’s cancer awareness topics; it’s been truly refreshing to witness. Campaigns such as “Teal Toes” in support of Ovarian Cancer Awareness and “Testing Choices” for Prostate Cancer have been surging through the internet offering advice, support and fundraising ideas. March is also Brain Tumour Awareness month, so for more information on the talks, campaigns and research that Brain Tumour UK have set up, visit their official webpage: http://www.braintumouruk.org.uk/brain-tumour-awareness-month-2011-0.

Do you remember when we last updated you on the Norfolk Business Challenge? A lot more has happened for the Norfolk team since then, with the most recent sign-ups being “Mapus-Smith & Lemmon,” a local accountancy firm who are training for a massive three-day 100 kilometre challenge with a target to raise £5,000 for the Macmillan Cancer Support! Vicky Ling, who is one of the event’s organisers, said “members of the public are already donating to show their support which is fantastic. In fact, we believe if our clients support us and make a donation we could easily exceed our target.” The Mapus Charity Challenge kicks off from the 30^th of April, so if you’re nearby, make sure clear some space in your diary to show them some support! To donate, visit their Just Giving page here: http://www.justgiving.com/mapuscharitychallenge2011 or call Vicky Ling on 01553 774761 for more info.

Over on the other side of the Macmillan Anglia zone, the Cambridgeshire crew have organised “The Cool Jazz Event,” which is taking place on the 14^th of May 2011. If you’re a serious John Coltrane fan, or you find yourself often scatting to a Miles Davis tune, head on down to the Comberton Leisure Centre! Tickets are available from the Millers Music Centre.

There are only nine days left in March, so let’s make these count and pack as much cancer awareness info, and fundraising ideas as we can until April swings by. Don’t forget, your input is always welcome, so if you have an idea that you want us to hear about, just give us a tweet at www.twitter.com/macmillananglia!