With Alison’s first cycle taking place in just over a month, many mornings and evenings are being devoted to the gym and weekends spent cycling throughout different areas of Scotland. Scotland’s unpredictable weather has means that Alison has faced all sorts of challenging conditions while cycling, great practice for her first #activAlison challenge, Ride the North.
Although Alison is raising funds for three other worthy charities, it’s the second time she’ll be completing Ride the North in aid of Maggie’s after taking part in 2014.
About Maggie’s
Regardless if cancer has affected you directly, or affected someone close to you, Maggie’s centres are open to anyone affected by it. The first Maggie’s centre opened in Edinburgh in 1996 and since then has continued to grow, offering free services at 17 centres across the UK, online and abroad.
Every Maggie’s centre has professional care staff on hand to chat and provide support to visitors, including Benefits Advisors, Psychologists and Nutritionists. The centres are uniquely designed by leading architects in order to create an uplifting environment that is warm, welcoming and full of light and open space.
The centres are in place in order to offer practical, emotional and social support for those affected by cancer:
Practical – Practical support can be anything from nutritional workshops and exercise classes to information sessions about pre and post treatment.
Emotional – This support can range from one to one counselling sessions with qualified experts toart therapy or creative writing classes that help express how you’re feeling.
Social - This support comes from the community spirit within the centres, even just a cup of tea with someone who understands what you’re going through can be a great relief.
Maggie’s is completely free and those who use the centres can come and go as they wish. It’s thanks to supporters like Alison who provide Maggie’s with the funds they need to keep giving those with cancer the support they need. Maggie’s not only rely on the generous fundraising and donations from others, they also rely on the support of volunteers to help at the centres, events and centre gardens.
Alison won’t have long to recover from Ride the North, in fact, on Friday 2nd September she will undertake a cyclothon on a stationary bike at Sainsbury’s supermarket in Garthdee, Aberdeen. Alison will cycle from 10am – 5pm in aid of Maggie’s. She is hoping to have the support of colleagues, friends and shoppers to help raise additional funds for Maggie’s.