Family's epic 12,000 foot climb to support The Sick Children's Trust

"We would’ve found it so difficult to manage as a family without being able to stay close to Martin at Crawford House.”

A family of keen hikers from Silloth, Cumbria, are taking on an epic challenge to climb the four biggest mountains in the Lake District to raise funds for The Sick Children’s Trust.

Macy Baker along with her dad, David and brother, Joel, will be climbing Skiddaw, Scafell Pike, Helvellyn and Scafell all in just one day on 24 June. The trio have all conquered several of the mountains individually in the past, but this will be the first time they have climbed all four in one go.

The family are taking on the challenge to raise money for The Sick Children’s Trust to thank the charity for supporting David and his wife, Carole, 23 years ago when their son Martin underwent treatment at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI). Martin had a condition which caused an abnormal connection between his oesophagus and the trachea. He had surgery when he was born to correct this but sadly Martin passed away at ten weeks old due to further complications. The family have always been grateful to The Sick Children’s Trust for keeping them close to their son’s bedside throughout his time in hospital at its ‘Home from Home’ Crawford House. Carole said:

“As a family we relied heavily on the support we received from the staff at Crawford House. We live 82 miles away from the RVI and with a poorly baby under one year old in hospital, we would’ve found it so difficult to manage as a family without being able to stay close to Martin.”

David has completed several fundraisers in the past for The Sick Children’s Trust and is excited for his children, Macy and Joel to join this latest challenge. Though they know that this will not be an easy feat. David said:

“From past experience of climbing these mountains on their own we know how tiring they can be, so this will be both a physical and mental challenge. We’ve been getting a lot of support from friends and family which has really motivated us, as well as knowing we are raising money for such a great charity.”

It costs The Sick Children’s Trust £30 to support a family for one night. £30 gives a family so much more than just a roof over their heads when their child is in hospital. £30 gives them someone to talk to, and a calm place to rest with their family. The Baker family are hoping that their efforts will raise £500. Macy and Joel added:

“The charity means so much to our family for the support it gave my parents so we’re always looking for ways to give back. We’re all very active so this was the perfect challenge for us. It is quite daunting and we know it will be difficult, but knowing that we’re doing it for Martin and for such a worthy cause will definitely push us through.”

2020 was a challenging year for the charity which saw a significant drop in income due to a lot of fundraising events being cancelled because of the pandemic. The charity expects 2021 to be equally as challenging. Crawford House Manager, Andrew Leadbitter, said:

“The Baker family are amazing supporters of ours and we can’t thank them enough for taking on such an incredible challenge to raise money for our ‘Homes from Home’. It is certainly a hard task but we’ll be with them every step of the way and we know they can do it.

“As families navigate the additional challenges that the pandemic has brought with it, we are continuing to provide them with the support they need in our ten ‘Homes from Home’ across the country, but this is only possible thanks to our wonderful supporters and fundraisers like the Baker family.”

More information about the family’s fundraiser can be found on their JustGiving page further information about The Sick Children’s Trust, please visit sickchildrenstrust.org