William's Fund

Updated total ... £520,923.05

The Cozy Christmas Fair started early on a rainy day... but with the front garden set up with a camp fire and the festive aromas of Christmas the guests came in their droves!! Oh so Cozy and friendly! The William's Fund stall was jingling with the new edition 'Pursey Penguin' purse bells which proved almost as popular as the guest appearances of Massimo and Russell our Personal Training Specialists! The Target Zone Fitness team have joined with William's Fund in a new venture to get supporters fit and raise money for William's Fund... more details to come... but needless to say the winners of the 6 personal training sessions were quite excited!!!

It was a wonderful day with hospitality from Madam Myers as warm as always and the beautiful Dawn with her gorgeous festive offerings... a perfect day and the sun even shone in the afternoon! We raised £300 in the raffle and from the wishing Well... A huge Thank you to Chris and to everyone who came and contributed, made tea, bought gifts and William's Fund Christmas Cards.... A Cozy Christmas to you all!!!

Schools' Invitational Oct 2011 - Note from Dominic Hampshire Nov 2011:

I apologise for the delay in publishing the results of both the competition and amount of money raised; contrary to popular belief, I do occasionally work. I don't have a number of email addresses so I should be grateful if you could pass this on to your respective teams.

First and foremost; Johanna, Liz and I would like to say a massive thank-you to you all for coming and supporting the event. Through your generosity, we raised a staggering £19,701.60 for William's Fund which is just fantastic - thank-you all so much. I mentioned names on the night so I won't do it again here, but none of this would have been possible without a number of individuals donating prizes, trophies, auction items, raffle prizes and their time.

As you will see, the results are here; please remember that Stoke Park did all the scoring (not us). Congratulations to Stoke Poges School and Jayne McFarlane. On their first appearance in the tournament, the Stoke Poges team won the main trophy, leading individual, leading lady and nearest the pin - a pretty good debut! In addition, I always feel that whenever a record is set, the relevant individual should receive the apposite recognition especially when the previous record is smashed! Congratulations to Marc Raven; I have a feeling that his record may stand for some time.

Many, many thanks again to everyone,

Note from Johanna:

‘Staggering’ just doesn’t cover it!! £19,701.60 is the most money raised in one event for William’s Fund since the Brazilian BBQ back in 2002!

We are humbled and SO grateful firstly to Liz and Dominic who organised the event with such panache, and I really do know how much work it takes....Thank you! Secondly to those who gave time, prizes, played golf (however well!) bought raffle tickets, auction lots and came to dinner....thank you all. The buzz at Stoke Park was incredible... buoyed on by our intrepid auctioneer John McGuiness....thank you again John for a wonderful job.... and even our singing friends and ‘extra’ bidders... I do hope that birthday party goes very well!!!

Congratulations to all winners and.... Congratulations Liz and Dominic for a tremendous day, the culmination of all your work....and boy did it really pay off!!!

Childhood Cancer Research is safe for a while longer ... thanks to you all! Best wishes and sincere thanks to everyone Johanna and Peter.

Jon Diver quietly slipped off and rode the London to Brighton cycle ride for us... raising a staggering amount of money!!! £4,145 so we would really love to thank him and all those who sponsored him... an amazing total! Apparently Jon was not put off by big hills and may do it again next year with more friends....?! Well done Jon. http://www.justgiving.com/Jons-cycle-ride

Paul Tack completed the gruelling and epic JOGLE – John O Groats to Lands End cycle ride... 9 days of saddle sore at over 100 miles a day.... fantastic achievement Paul. I’m sure the beer and curry on day 7 improved your stamina!!! Another fabulous total of £1,915 for William’s Fund. Thank you Paul and huge admiration for the completion of the ride!! www.justgiving.com/paul-tack See picture of Paul at the finish..

The justgiving pages for both Jon and Paul are both still active so if you would like to show appreciation for their agony please just click the links to donate.

If you haven’t yet read about Helen’s Lanzarote Iron Man... you really must it’s a great read! See attached for the full story... make sure you have a cup of tea ready!! Helen’s justgiving page is also still live... her account of the event is AT LEAST worth the price of a book ..so if you enjoy it... please go to www.justgiving.com/ten-point and donate. You don’t need to be a sports fan to enjoy this story... just think of it as a recommended holiday read!! (oh yes, and Helen is desperate to get to £5k and I really don’t believe anyone could endure a 3rd Iron Man to reach the target...even though I enjoy the stories so much it might just be worth it.... for us...not Helen!!!)

The Royal Grammar School -High Wycombe(See News page) sent £225 after my addressing the boys in 2 assemblies. The boys were a delight, very attentive and polite, many thanks to all the boys, staff and parents for their generosity.

BOYMEETSGIRL Fashion Show - Just back from a brilliant fashion show laid on by BOYMEETSGIRL at the Bell House Hotel.... a real buzz throughout the day as children ran about getting hair styled and practising their cat walk poses! Not to mention playing in the sunshine and eting the lovely lunch provided.

Clare and her team worked tirelessly all day setting up, lighting, sound, staging ... and it was all well worth it when the music started and the children paraded the fashion labels (perfectly described by Edmond) as they took to the catwalk like little professionals!

The BOYMEETSGIRL clothing range is extensive, up to the minute designer with a fun edge, all the outfits looked fantastic and it was great to see some boys looking very comfortable on the catwalk too....who could fail to feel comfortable in those adorable and cool brands !

The support for William’s Fund was tremendous..... great prizes in the raffle including Chelsea tickets, Urchin Rock photography, Oakland Park Golf, BMG vouchers....

A wonderful day for all, with thanks to BOYMEETSGIRL and all those involved in the show and of course all the gorgeous children on the catwalk!!!

See the photos here

Feb 2011 - Do I dare say Happy New Year??! In my guilt for not updating the site I analyse why.... and decide on a combination of reasons.... if I do an update in detail and list all those who have helped, contributed etc I might just miss someone or something and risk upsetting them. How do I start.... with a re-vamp of the news....a ‘what’s on’ or a ‘what’s been... and eventually I finish up with ‘oh my goodness is that the time... must get tea ready/ pick up from school/empty the washer/go to work....!!! Hence no updates and an even more guilty me. Apologies from the top...
So... a new idea...an Amnesty.... !!!
I offer huge and humble thanks to everyone who has helped over Christmas to raise money in any way, shape or form.... if I have not listed your event please forgive me. There are a number of photos from various events which are now posted so please look for yours!! The Christmas cards sold very well and I have spoken to Mum re the new design for 2011.... over to you MUM!!!
If you have photos or words from your event which we can publish on the website please send them and I promise to upload...well actually I send them to Alyson who will upload!! Thank you Alyson!!!
There now that wasn’t so bad was it?!!!
2011 – moving swiftly on -! We have started well with an invitation to speak at the Rotary Club of Amersham on 9th Feb, the Chairman and members were very welcoming and receptive to the history and ongoing activities of William’s Fund, we thank them for their hospitality.
The Royal Grammar School in High Wycombe has invited us to speak in assembly as one of their charities, we were put forward by Matthew and Josh Penning Lambert who I hope will take part in the talk on 23rd March. Thank you boys for taking the time to put us forward, I look forward to visiting RGS.
Dr Chris Mitchell has sent us an update on research issues which you can read in full, this helps to explain not only the scientific side but also the funding and where all our donations go.... just a reminder that there are no administration fees or paid employees associated with William’s Fund!
One of the most impressive events in 2010 was that of Robin and Helen from Ten-Point in Chesham taking part in their first ever Iron Man... yes ,a full Iron Man...in Austria. Helen wrote her story on return and it is well worth the read... very entertaining... you can find it HERE!
I popped in to see Helen after Christmas to find that in the few weeks since I had seen her (in the build up to Christmas) Helen had fallen from her road bike, sustained a serious neck injury, had surgery to the neck injury and was already back on the bike and running again.... we were astounded ... not only that but Helen still intends to complete the next challenge of the Lanzarote Iron Man in May... madness??!
Helen says she is partly driven by the fact that her fundraising page on Just Giving (www.justgiving.com/ten-point ) was appealing for £5,000 which she did not reach...so the Iron Men will continue until it IS reached.... so I guess it’s down to your generosity as to how soon Helen can stop ...!!! A blog of the training involved and Helen’s trials and tribulations can be seen on the Ten- Point website.
We are in awe and obviously very grateful!
If you have any fund raising ideas however big or small please contact us.... we need all we can get to keep the research going.... Thank you.

Christmas Fair 2010 - total raised £3900


Afritique and Lunchbox World	Anne buys up the Book People!	Beadazzle girls do it again!	Cool Chicks...cool gear!

Crazy Catch team... you just have to get one!	Donna with the Fatboys from St Giles Furniture	Fine Oil & Spice...Tim chats up Claire!	Have you Tried their Deli...yum... and the Butcher too!

Jane Hogben Pottery & Michelle's Cards	Liz David with her fab homemade chocolates!	Liz, Jill and Barbara get hot in the kitchen!	Maddie & Jaimie try out the Tangle Teezer!

Olly M... teenage dream jewellery!	Reindeer skins	Rob from Chalfont Classic Cuisine..wonderful catering	Rustic Revivals & Philippa Goldie jewellery

Spark of Inspiration

Juice Jack If you bought a Juice Jack charger has it got the right charity sticker? The text-donation details recently changed so the text word is now JUICE and the number is now 88010. To recap, the sticker invites anyone borrowing the charger to make a £1 donation just by texting JUICE to 88010 - feel free to try it!

So if you need a new sticker please email nigel@juicejack.com with your contact details. He'll send you a free replacement. The more chargers we have out there in homes or offices all helps to increase both awareness and the potential volume of donations.

Ten Point A Rookie's Ironman - Austrian style - read the story by Helen Privett from Ten Point Triathlon shop in Chesham Bois.

Latest Research Update from Chris Mitchell at John Radcliffe Hospital - April 2010

We are looking nanoparticles as a means of delivering small molecules selectively to cancer cells. The initial work is being carried out by a "sandwich" student as there is some initial work to demonstrate the proof of principle.

Elizabeth Rapa, in her PhD and immediate post-doctoral work, demonstrated that it was possible to inhibit the spread of rhabdomyosaroma cells in a laboratory test system by using a small RNA molecule. The nanoparticle system might be a good way to deliver the inhibitory molecule selectively to the cancer cells in a patient, so that it had no effect on the normal functions of non-cancerous cells.

We have just finish writing up Elizabeth's work and will very shortly be submitting it for publication. Elizabeth was awarded her PhD in September 2008, and was in part supported by William's fund.

Over the next year we hope to develop the nanoparticle system further and fund a PhD student to work on it for a three year period. We hope that the student will be the "William Dodd Fellow", and that person will be very largely funded by William's Fund.

Stoke Park Golf Invitational

Liz David the other wonderful organizer!	Guests and players	Guests and players
Guests and players	Guests and players	Guests and players
Dominic Hampshire the wonderful organizer!	Ben Simpson winner of most golf awards and donator of lots of auction prizes!	Emma Hargreaves wins Lady player award.
John McGuinness England Bowls player held a magnificent auction with panache!

Would like to say a big thank you and congratulations to Kevin who ran 2 back to back marathons to raise funds for Williams Fund, one of which was the London Marathon which Kevin finished in 3hrs 40 mins, he has a Just Giving page at: http://www.justgiving.com/kevin-McGilvray Well done Kevin!!

Angels Gather Here 6 Nov 2009 Cozy Christmas Fair……Wow what can I say? Another cozy year at Chris’s cozy house! Familiar faces dropping by for a little shopping, soup and friendly chat… what could be better? If you have never been to this event …. You have missed a treat….watch this space for next year!! The raffle, entrance and refreshments were all donated to William’s Fund and this raised an amazing £564 ….wonderful, thanks to Chris and Dawn for another wonderful day.

Christmas Fair - 4 November 2009 - A wonderful sunny day (thanks Wills!) greeted our traders and supporters at the Christmas Fair. The Crazy Catch outdoor pagoda was a wonderful attraction with demonstrations on the equipment by boys (kindly donated by Thorpe House School!), the Crazy Catch certainly went down well and reminds us that we can all have fun outside with the children while getting exercise and practicing ball skills…a real winner for families and clubs. If you missed it you can follow the link to Flicx and if you decide to buy anything please say you came through William’s Fund and we will get our 10%! Thank you.

Once past the door we were greeted by Kristina Streatfield and her wonderful table designs… you can have all your entertaining tables designed and laid out for those special occasions…they look magnificent and really set the scene!

Up the stairs led to plants donated by Snush Designs, Cakes (mostly baked by Jo Ollis and Heather..thank you ladies), William’s Fund Christmas Cards and the amazing Robin demonstrating the very new SPRAYZ pens… almost blow pens but with a difference…and a little magic thrown in! Once again Robin was selling this new product only found in Hamleys but at a much better price…just for us!! Hope the children all enjoy them! I know mine will.

In the kitchen were the magnificent team of Liz, Barbara and Jill serving a delicious selection of their homemade soup, chili (thanks Jane too!)and cakes to keep everyone well fed and watered while they shopped! Thank you ladies!

Onto more shopping… MMMMmmm Liz David Chocs, Fine Oil and Spice… Tim just has to be there to keep us amused, and where else could we get such fantastic oils and balsamic?! (and insults) then on to Clare Simcock glassware, The ilk Corporation with the lovely Lisa and those extremely talented Cool Chicks! Jewels and decoration from Bali, Treasures and Treats, Fingerprint jewellery from Sue and Christmas decs from the Tythe Barn. Our wonderful Beadazzle with their ever changing goodies to tempt us and of course Will from Millennium Trees …an annual necessity and SUCH a great service ! Downstairs we had Book events with their value books which just walked out… and our wonderful new find… Bailey Park with a stunning array of gifts for everyone. I managed to get most of my Christmas shopping on this one day! To end the day we drew the Jo Ollis Dining Extravaganza draw which was very popular … winners were Sam Thompson, Yvonne Mullally and Sally Lomax…congratulations girls…enjoy!

Thank you to everyone who came along to add to the lovely atmosphere and support us, all the raffle prizes are allocated and delivered and so now we just need to get working on next year…. Which is going to be REVAMPED, va va voomed and very exciting….so watch this space!

Total raised…. Christmas Fair £2541 Dining Extravaganza Draw £3333 … an amazing result…. Thank you to our helpers, we couldn’t do it without you!

Johanna was on Radio Oxford 3 Nov 2009 - promoting William's Fund and the Christmas cards.

Well Alyson I am off to bed but I must send you all sorts of exciting info for special fund raising ideas…I just have to collate the info and arrange it…. Very exciting stuff!

Chrysalis Community Choir sang on Sunday 8 November at 7pm at Chesham Park Community College, Chesham - An evening to remember - a charity concert in aid of Brain Tumour UK and William's Fund.

Johanna live on Radio Oxford 17 March 2009 -listen to the broadcast (these are large files to download: 3MB for part 1 and 5MB for part 2. Please note they are in .mp3 format)

Livi and Ella ran the London Santa run for us and raised £100 (see right)

The Beehive and Honeycomb Nursery in Fulmer once again supported us with proceeds from their Christmas Concert…another £150, thank you so much.

Jordan’s Junior Strings performed beautifully at the Eden Centre in High Wycombe in December. Crowds were amazed at how well all the very young children played…without any sheet music!! Well done everyone and congratulations on raising £300.18, you were brilliant!

Jordans School sent £66 as a donation from their charity event – Thank you!

St Mary’s School Gerrards Cross sent £66.37 from their Young Enterprise Scheme profits, Thank you girls and well done.

The William's Fund Christmas Fair raised £2,819.16 - another fantastic day!

The Angels Gather Here Cozy Christmas Fair raised £366.13 on a splendid chilly day.

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