Six-year-old Gracie is cycling 200 miles to raise money for Hope House, to thank us for helping to care for her big sister.

She is pedalling her little legs off alongside her dad Chris on cycle paths near her home and so far she has raised a staggering £1,800!

Gracie’s sister Lily, who is now ten, was born with a life-threatening condition and has been visiting Hope House for respite care for the last eight years. We also provide sibling support to Gracie and her younger sisters Erin, 3, and Emilie, 2.

Lifeline

Mum Vicky says Hope House is a lifeline, and our staff at the hospice have become part of their extended family.

“Lily laps up every ounce of 1:1 attention she gets and you can see the excitement in her face when we arrive. The nurses are trained to the highest level and we have total peace of mind that Lily’s care and medical needs are in the best of hands during her stays," she says.

“Lily’s respite at Hope House enables us to catch up on some much needed sleep and allows us to do the things with her three sisters that aren’t possible with Lily.

“Hope House once had Lily to stay for two weeks while her baby sister was in hospital with meningitis. Their crisis care is always there, so they are an absolute lifeline to us and many other families.”

Sibling Support

Gracie, who is a pupil at Penygloddfa Primary School in Newtown, also loves visiting Hope House and enjoys activities and days out with the sibling support team Mary and Brian.

She says: "I love to play with the toys in Hope House and I like to have a day out with Mary & Brian. We miss Lil when she stays at Hope house but we get to spend lots of time with Mummy and Daddy.”

Gracie’s cycling adventure started when she decided she wanted to do something for Hope House during lock down to thank us for everything we do for her family. She set her goal at 100 miles for June and got cycling.

200 mile goal

When she smashed the 100 mile mark she decided to set herself a 200 mile goal – she has just ten miles left to cycling today (Thursday), ten miles tomorrow and a last ten on Sunday.

“She has really enjoyed the challenge and has been keen to get going whatever the weather,” adds Vicky. 

“We would just like to say a huge thank you to all the family and friends who have sponsored Gracie, including my best friend Leri Lane who has also ran a 50 Mile Lock Down Challenge and raised another £480 for Hope House. Everyone has been simply amazing.”

You can sponsor Gracie at: https://www.facebook.com/donate/310656353434011/ and find out more about Leri’s challenge at: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/leri-lane50junelockdown

Gracie is pictured enjoying one of her bike rides with dad Chris and little sister Erin (on the back of her dad's bike)