Isle Of Wight Man Runs Length Of England To Raise Funds For Heart Charity

A man from Cowes has taken on a 874-mile challenge to raise funds for the heart charity which supported his niece as a baby.

41 year old Steve Richmond, completed the Land’s End to John O’Groats Virtual Challenge for Wessex Heartbeat, by walking and running over the course of a year.

Combining daily runs with long walks alongside his miniature Dachshund, Charlie, Steve also completed two Southampton Half Marathons, the Great South Run, Needles Half Marathon and the Derby 10k.

He is aiming to raise £1,000 for the regional heart charity, which provided essential support to his family after his niece, 15 year old Leana, was born with a life-threatening heart condition.

Wessex Heartbeat supports the families and work of the Wessex Cardiac Unit based at Southampton General Hospital.

Steve, a General Manager for Isle of Wight Distribution, said:

“This has been my biggest challenge to date, and I am thrilled to have completed it. I do a couple of fundraisers per year for various causes, and often choose Wessex Heartbeat as it is a charity close to my family’s heart.

“Coincidently, my fundraiser has ended just as Leana prepares for the next stage of her cardiac care. She is currently preparing for further surgery to replace the Pulmonary Valve that was replaced previously at the age of two-months and knowing the mental and physical challenges she is facing at such a young age helped spur me on during my runs.”

Leana was born at Princess Anne’s Hospital in Southampton after being diagnosed with Tetralogy of Fallot’s, Absent Pulmonary Valve Syndrome.

Within the first three months of her life, Leana endured three major surgeries followed by four months in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Southampton General Hospital during the first year of her life.

Due to living on the Isle of Wight, where the level of cardiac care needed was unavailable, Michelle and Tony Hough, Leana’s parents, were faced with the difficult decision of who could stay with her on Southampton’s PICU ward, which at the time had a 'one parent only' policy.

However, the family were soon introduced to Wessex Heartbeat’s Heartbeat House – a 25-bedroom 'home from home' which serves the families of those undergoing treatment at Southampton’s Cardiac Centre by offering them a quiet refuge just two minutes away from the hospital.

Michelle said:

“Heartbeat House made a huge difference to us during these difficult months as it meant that we were able to remain together as a family during Leana’s treatment. We are so grateful for the support we received and for Steve who has worked tirelessly to achieve incredible feat.”

More than 2,811 families from across the Wessex region use the home annually, with the total running costs of its facilities and all of its bedrooms totalling to around £87,000 a year.

John Munro said:

“We would like to express our huge gratitude to Steve for his fantastic fundraising efforts. As Wessex Heartbeat enters its 30th anniversary it is heart-warming to receive support from previous patients and their families who have benefited from our services over the years.

“A lot has changed in cardiac care since Leana was first with us, and we are proud to be at the forefront of these developments. Together with our supporters, we have raised more than £16million since 1992, which has enabled us to put in place crucial improvements in the Wessex Cardiac Centre.

“Such as our 3D heart modelling software which is transforming the way heart surgery is performed on children across the region.

“The technology supports clinicians at the University Hospital Southampton by encouraging less evasive, and more accurate, pre-operative planning for surgery on children living with congenital heart disease. It is truly remarkable.”

To donate to Steve’s fundraiser, please visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/steven-richmond