WE NEED YOU!!

Are you interested in joining the organising team and becoming a Crohn’s and Colitis UK volunteer? We have some new members who we are delighted to welcome onboard but we are still looking to enhance our team further and would love to have you on board and become part of our friendly team. If you would like to be part of our team and can bring any other skills please get in touch with us and come along to meet the team. You would be most welcome. As always we hope you all enjoy reading the newsletter and if you have any suggestions for articles for the next edition then please contact us.

IN THIS ISSUE:

Anfield Awareness Day – Page 2

Walk It! 2018 – Page 3

Run The Night – Page 4

Fundraising Update – Page 5

Volunteer With The Mersey Network – Page 6

Word Search & The Funny Side of Things – Page 7

Events – Page 8

NETWORK NEWS

Hello everyone and welcome to the latest edition of our newsletter! The first part of the year has been super busy for the Mersey Network and we’re excited to share with you everything we’ve been up to!

First off, we’ve been busy fundraising; with bucket collections at the Empire Theatre and bag packing at Asda. Full details can be found on page 5.

The team was also out in force at the Walk It! 2018 events in London and Manchester. We had a brilliant time and you can find out all about it on page 3.

We’ve also expanded the network with a new volunteer, Ben! He’s made a big splash already, getting involved with the fundraising at the Empire Theatre and with Walk It. We’d like to say a big thanks to Ben for coming on board!

If you’d like to volunteer with the network, we’re always on the lookout for new recruits. You can contact us through the various ways listed on the right of the page or come and join us for our Volunteer Information Event, Saturday 10th September. Full details are on page 6. We’d love to hear from you!

GET IN TOUCH

If you would like to organise a fundraising event this year, want to get involved with the team or need help and support, please get in touch!

mersey@networks.crohnsandcolitis.org.uk

August 2018

Issue 13

Mersey Local Network

CrohnsColitisMY

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Group

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Local Network Newsletter Page 2

ANFIELD AWARENESS DAY

Undoubtedly the highlight of our year so far, the Mersey Network returned to Anfield Stadium on Saturday 12th May for an awareness day packed with info for anybody interested in or affected by IBD. We had a wide variety of speakers and topics, from medical professionals to sufferers, those involved with the national charity and the Mersey Network volunteers. The day gave attendees a unique chance to ask questions and hear their thoughts. Kicking off the day was David Risser, Director of Information and Support Services from Crohn’s and Colitis UK, who talked us through the future direction for the charity and shared with us a remarkable video highlighting this. From there, a wide range of topics were covered in the talks throughout the day, including:

• Treatment options in IBD

• Pregnancy and IBD

• The UK IBD Registry

• Transitioning from child to adult care

• Life with a stoma The Mersey Network also dedicated part of the day to saying a big thank you once again to Smedley Hydro for their fundraising efforts. They presented us with a cheque for over £770 (to go with the remarkable £13,000+ they raised last year!). A big thank you as well to The Rotary Club of Ormskirk Clocktower, who raised £300 from their brilliant fundraising! We’d like to say a massive thank you to everybody who gave up their time to speak on the day and to everybody who attended. We couldn’t have done it without you!

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Local Network Newsletter Page 3

WALK IT! 2018

Earlier this year, Crohn’s and Colitis UK once again held a series of incredibly successful 5k and 10k walks to raise money and awareness for Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Over 5,000 of you walked in 2018 to show your support for people affected by Crohn's and Colitis along our 5k or 10k routes in your community. The Mersey Network was in attendance at the London walk on June 9th and the Manchester walk the following week on the 16th. The London walk was opened this year by television presenter and vocal coach, Carrie Grant, who has lived with Crohn's Disease since 1983. Everybody had a fabulous time meeting Carrie, who was happy to chat and take photos with the walkers and volunteers. Also attending was YouTuber Hannah Witton, who has made several videos about living with Ulcerative Colitis and, more recently, with a stoma. Both have been instrumental in raising awareness about IBD and we’d like to say a big thank you to both of them for attending! As always, we had a fab time helping out and can’t wait for next time. We’d like to say a massive thanks and congratulations to everybody who took part – see you next year!

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Local Network Newsletter Page 4

RUN THE NIGHT

Coming this October, Crohn’s and Colitis will be offering a chance to take part in a unique run whilst raising money and awareness for the charity. The unique 10km course is your chance to race from the depths of a Thames tunnel to the adrenaline-filled highs of the luminate zones, until you reach the exclusive after-party beyond. The route will take you past London landmarks such as Canary Wharf, the Cutty Sark and finally the O2 Arena. Descend through illuminated tunnels with the Thames above you and run alongside it before arriving at mega-club Studio 338 for a free celebratory drink at the afterparty.

Under cover of darkness, a new challenge awaits. Get ready to Run The Night.

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Local Network Newsletter Page 5

It’s been a busy first half of the year for the Mersey Network when it comes to fundraising. From the 16th-21st of April, the Empire Theatre in Liverpool very kindly allowed us to fundraise after their brilliant production of Hairspray. Armed with our trusty buckets, we were thrilled to have the chance to do some collecting at the historic city centre theatre. The crowds certainly enjoyed the show and found themselves in high spirits afterwards. Thanks to their generosity, we raised an amazing amount throughout the week. We’d like to extend our warmest thanks and appreciation to The Empire for allowing us to fundraise and we hope to be back for another show next year! Following on from that, we spent the day bag-packing at the Asda store on Smithdown Road on Saturday 2nd June. We all had a brilliant time helping out with the packing and even picked up a few recipe tips! Thanks to the shoppers’ generosity, we managed to raise a brilliant £310, as well as spreading awareness and making contact with some fellow sufferers. Again, we offer our greatest appreciation to Asda and hope we’ll be able to do it again in the future!

FUNDRAISING UPDATE

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Local Network Newsletter Page 6

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Local Network Newsletter Page 7

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THE BEWILDERED BOWEL: WORDSEARCH

Run

Night

Volunteer

Friendly

Social

Worthwhile

Bowling

Event

Fundraising

Awareness

Local

Network

Invisible

Illness

Prescription

Diagnosis

Support

Friends

Family

Lifestyle

Stronger

Together

THE FUNNY SIDE OF THINGS

These images and their copyright belong to their rightful original authors; we have shared them from the public domain of the internet as we wanted to give such authors more awareness to wider, appreciative audiences.

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Local Network Newsletter Page 8

The Mersey Local Network has made every reasonable effort to ensure the content of this newsletter is accurate, but accepts no responsibility for any errors or omission. The views of the contributors do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of Crohn’s and Colitis UK and no reference in this newsletter to any product or service is intended as a recommendation.

CONTACT US

MERSEY LOCAL NETWORK Local Network Coordinator: Helen Thompson Helpline: 0300 222 5700* Website: www.crohnsandcolitis.org.uk/Mersey Email: mersey@networks.crohnsandcolitis.org.uk Crohn's and Colitis UK 1 Bishops Square, Hatfield Business Park, Hatfield AL10 9NE enquiries@crohnsandcolitis.org.uk www.crohnsandcolitis.org.uk Charity registered in England Number 1117148 Charity registered in Scotland Number SC038632 A company limited by guarantee in England: company number 5973370

HELPLINE Our helpline is a confidential service providing

information and support to anyone affected by Crohn’s

Disease, Ulcerative Colitis and other forms of

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).

Our team can:

• help you understand more about IBD, diagnosis and

treatment options

• provide information to help you to live well with your

condition

• help you understand and access disability benefits

• be there to listen if you need someone to talk to

• put you in touch with a trained support volunteer

who has a personal experience of IBD

CONTACT US BY:

Telephone: 0300 222 5700*

Mon, Tue, Wed and Fri – 9 am to 5 pm

Thu – 9 am to 1 pm

Email: info@crohnsandcolitis.org.uk

Web Chat (Live Online): see our website for details

*Calls to this number are charged at a standard landline rate

or may be free if you have an inclusive minutes’ package.

Calls may be recorded for monitoring and evaluation

purposes.

If you have received this newsletter by post and would be happy to receive future editions by email please provide your name, membership number and email address to groups@crohnsandcolitis.org.uk.

This will save the group valuable funds which can be used to benefit all those affected by Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Crohn’s and Colitis UK Mersey Group

CrohnsColitisMY

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

VOLUNTEER INFORMATION EVENT Date: Monday 10th September Time: 7:00pm Venue: Holiday Inn, Lime Street, Liverpool L1 1NQ This will be a chance to meet the Mersey volunteers and find out more about volunteering with your local network. BOWLING EVENING Date: Friday 12th October Time: 6pm Venue: Hollywood Bowl, Edge Lane Retail Park, Montrose Way, Liverpool L13 1EW Come and join us for an evening of bowling fun at Hollywood Bowl! COFFEE MORNING AT LOVELOCKS Date: Saturday 10th November Time: 10:30am Venue: Lovelocks Coffee Shop, Unit 6, Old Haymarket, Liverpool L1 6ER

All are welcome for some great coffee and treats at our new fave place, Lovelocks! CHRISTMAS MEETUP Date: Saturday 8th December Time: 12pm Venue: Love Thy Neighbour, 108-110 Bold St, Liverpool L1 4HY We had such a good time last year, we’re doing it again! Get your festive gladrags on and join us for a fab, Christmassy time at Love They Neighbour.