Thanet community news: Broadstairs mum’s marathon triumph, Pilgrims Hospices and Martha Trust

Marie has completed her first marathon

A Broadstairs mum of two is celebrating after conquering her first marathon.

Marie Godwin took on the 26.2 mile London marathon despite being a ‘non-runner’ so she could raise funds for Alzheimer’s Research UK.

Marie, who previously managed the Albion Hotel in Broadstairs with her husband Shane, wore a vest with sponsored names printed on it, each representing a mile with the name of a loved one, carer or very special person.

She said: “I am pleased to say that I completed it in 5hours 31 minutes and achieved my objective of not walking at all!   I thoroughly enjoyed the day, the weather conditions were perfect and the atmosphere was absolutely amazing.

“I managed to see my family three times around the course which gives you such a boost!   I would definitely recommend anyone considering the marathon to apply and run for a charity – don’t ever think you’re too old. As a non-runner I only followed a 16 week plan and stretched every morning and felt remarkably well afterwards – I wasn’t even stiff on the Tuesday.

“Thanks to all who have supported and encouraged me, to date my fundraising for Alzheimer’s Research UK stands at just over £4500.  My just giving page is still open for anyone still wishing to donate using the following link:  https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/marie-godwin4

Pilgrims Hospices

Pilgrims Hospices, which cares for terminally ill patients across Kent, has become the first charity in the country to accept a new multi-retailer gift card that can be used exclusively in charity shops.

The Charity Shop Gift Card is backed by the Charity Retail Association (CRA), and will be sold and accepted in Pilgrims Hospices’ 30 shops, which help raise money to support over 200 Pilgrims nurses and therapists who provide care to thousands of people in east Kent.

As well as boosting charity funds, money spent by cardholders will have a positive effect on the environment by supporting the growing second-hand revolution, which is being led by the environmentally aware Gen Z and Millennials, and is reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill.

Charity shops divert around 339,000 tonnes of textiles away from landfill or incineration every year, saving councils £31million in annual waste disposal charges*.

The gift cards themselves are recyclable and compostable.

The Charity Shop Gift Card has been developed by Gift Card CIC, a social enterprise, and gives regional and national charities that are members of the Charity Retail Association their first opportunity to tap into the £7billion-a-year gift card market**.

More charities across the country will join the scheme in the coming weeks and months.

Local authorities and other support agencies can also choose to partner with the scheme and use pre-loaded gift cards to distribute the financial assistance they provide to individuals and families, which will then be spent in participating charity shops.

The Charity Shop Gift Card is a member of Social Enterprise UK, and the Gift Card and Voucher Association.

Tim Stewart, Retail and Business Development Manager for Pilgrims Hospices, said: “Pilgrims Hospices are delighted to join the scheme right at the very beginning. We truly believe that The Charity Shop Gift Card will help generate much needed funds for the hospice and help introduce new people to charity shopping”

Martha Trust

A well-known annual event for Martha Trust which had to be postponed 3 times due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, finally went ahead this month.

The Kent based Bavarian style band -Bettesteiner Footstompers, as seen on The Alan Titchmarsh Show -had the crowd singing and dancing and volunteers dressed in costume went round the tables serving beer and wine all evening.

Big Willy, Otto Gell, Gretel, Stefan Schnetker and Wandering Hans played a selection of foot stomping, thigh slapping German tunes that gave this live music event the authentic festive feel.

Steve Griffiths (aka Stefan from The Bettesteiner Footstompers) said “We were absolutely delighted to have performed at the event. We all agree that the work Martha Trust does is of immense value to many people, so it is really exciting for us to be able to make our own contribution.
“We try to be as traditional and accurate as possible and have numerous stories of how we have convinced Bavarians and Austrians in the audience that we are actually from Germany.
Our whole act is built around the concept that we want our audiences to leave the show feeling that they have had a really fun evening and, ideally, be hoarse from singing so much which they did!”

Fundraising & Events Officer Kerry Banks BEM added: “It was a truly fantastic event that has been enjoyed by so many over the years. We are incredibly grateful to Sandwich Community Events that covered the cost of hiring our new venue St Mary’s Arts Centre and to Siobhan Matthews and Steve Laslett for their support– the building is spectacular and perfect for this event.

“We are so lucky to have the ongoing support of The Bettesteiner Footstompers who we absolutely love!. Thank you also to our amazing volunteers , to our sponsors  Solleys Farms Ice-cream, NWR Ltd, Debbie Baker, ASDA Broadstairs, Rooks online and Bakkavor /Tilmanstone Salads and to our raffle and auction prize givers who all help to make the event a success.”

Next year’s date will be on Saturday March 26, 2022. To book your tickets, visit www.marthatrust.org.uk/germanmusicnight, call 01304 610448 or email [email protected]

If you would like to sponsor the event, please email [email protected] or call 01304 610448 to hear what opportunities there are and learn  more about how your support will make a difference.

2 Comments

  1. Very well done Marie for a runner it would be most commendable but for a non- runner it’s incredible thing to do. Great respect to you.

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