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You never know how strong
you are until being strong is your only choice
DESPITE being given just a 5% chance of
survival, Naomi Daly successfully battled Leukaemia and Non-Hodgson's Lymphoma.
A Facebook update simply read:- "I've done it." But 10 months after beating the illnesses, Naomi developed Pneumonia, which
proved 1 battle too many for the 21 year old. Naomi sadly died on New Year's
Eve 2012.
On Saturday, 13 June 2015; what would have been Naomi's 24th Birthday; 9 of
Naomi's friends and family will take part in a 200ft abseil from the top of the
Royal Liverpool University Hospital to raise funds for vital equipment and
facilities in the new Royal; something that Naomi cared passionately about.
So far, more than 50 people have signed up for the abseil to help raise funds
for facilities which will include a bespoke Teenage and Young Adults Cancer Unit
with a better environment for younger patients.
Naomi's sisters, Anne Marie and Katy, along with the rest of the family and
friends are putting their fear of heights to one side.
Anne Marie, 38, said:- "She's making us laugh through life just as she did
when she was alive. We're absolutely terrified; we don't do heights. Whenever
our family finds itself in a tricky situation; like a 200ft abseil; it must
have Naomi behind it with her mischievous smile. But it's her Birthday; what
better way to celebrate it?
When she was given the all clear she put a message on Facebook saying:-
'I've
done it'. But then she developed Pneumonia and we lost her on New Year's Eve.
We walked out of the hospital just after midnight as all the fireworks and
church bells were going off around us."
Naomi wanted a tattoo of a cancer research ribbon, with the words:- "You never
know how strong you are, until being strong is your only choice..." written
across it, but she was never able to get it. "She had so much strength and
zest for life and never moaned about what she was going through. She was the
type of person that everyone wanted to be around and to know. She probably would
have been up for giving the abseil a go."
laughed Anne Marie.
Naomi was treated on ward 10Z's Day Care unit and having experienced the ward
conditions 1st hand, started campaigning for the refurbishment of the ward so
that people like her could enjoy a better quality of life during treatment.
The Dalys want to use Saturday's abseil to inspire others, just as Naomi did.
"She campaigned for more funding and fought really hard to have a better
environment for patients; she even went to the local MP. She had so much drive
even when she was unwell. She's still inspiring us." said Anne Marie.
A keen actor, Naomi was part of the Everyman theatre group and spent 6 weeks
teaching English to children in Thailand just before she was diagnosed with
cancer. "She was so dramatic; she was given the nickname Naomi
'Diva' Daly on her ward. She wanted to make it all the way to Hollywood so we
had a Hollywood star made with her name on it which now sits next to her urn at
home," said
Anne Marie.
Katy Daly, 31, remembers how being in hospital didn't get in the way of family
life: "Our brother, Peter, lives not far from the Royal and Naomi could
see his apartment from her room. He would flash his lights on and off when he
got home after visiting her to let her know that he got back ok and to tell her
to go to sleep.
She was never alone in hospital; there was always someone there with her. We
would all turn up and ask how she was feeling, but she was never interested in
that, she just wanted to know about our day and how we were. She was always
thinking about others."
The abseil is part of the R-Charity appeal to raise £10million for vital
equipment and facilities in the new Royal.
The £10 million fund will allow for
some of the most up to date and innovative treatments and equipment to be used
in the new hospital, giving patients from Merseyside access to some of the best
care available in the UK. |
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Mr Motivator Launches 'Older
Actives' Competition in Search for Fittest Person over 65's
IF you are over 65's and still like to
keep active, know that age is just a number and you take pride in putting
younger people to shame with your fitness routines, then don your training shoes
and enter the national search to find the UK's most active person aged 65 and
over, starting with a regional winner from the North West.
Launched by well-known celebrity fitness guru Mr Motivator, who at 62 still
keeps fit and healthy with regular workouts that used to keep the UK energised
every morning in the 90's, the 'Older Actives' competition, sponsored by Ateronon,
is searching for 9 regional winners from around the Country, culminating in an
overall national winner taking the crown.
Fear not, the winner won't just be chosen for running 9 marathons or being a
veteran cyclist who completes 30 miles a day. It can be any form of exercise
that wins the competition, whether that's enjoying swimming, going to weekly
Zumba classes or maybe you have a prize kept garden, as long as it keeps you fit
and healthy and you enter, you have a chance of winning.
The winner from the North West will receive £500 worth of Ateronon products,
£100 Marks and Spencer vouchers and a winner's medal. All regional winners will
then be automatically entered into the national final later in the year. The
national winner will be crowned as the Older Actives 2015 champion and will
receive the above prizes as well as a trophy and £1,000 worth of UK holiday
vouchers.
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Whilst the over 65's have been considered as
the least active age group, new research shows that they are now the UK's most
frequent gym users. With a shift over the decades of how older people are
perceived, the Older Actives campaign is aimed at promoting wellbeing and
proving that anyone, regardless of age, can remain active.
Mr Motivator, said:- "My whole ethos in life is about looking after myself
and when I was asked to help launch this campaign, I literally jumped at the
chance. Celebrating exercise in older age is something we all need to embrace
and the Older Actives campaign will reward those who include fitness in their
daily life. Anyone can fit exercise into their routine, whether that's
taking the stairs instead of the lift, a walk to the shops or going to the
supermarket and lifting cans! You don't need to spend a fortune to stay fit and
healthy and I think this campaign is a great way to inspire people of my
generation in the North West, to get active."
Chris Meaney, Head of Marketing at Ateronon Active, added:-
"This is a
great campaign for us to get behind as it sits perfectly with Ateronon's brand
values of helping people live healthier, more active lifestyles. We want
to celebrate the achievements of the older generation and hopefully inspire
others along the way."
The launch of the Older Actives Campaign supports a new product called Ateronon
Active, a natural supplement aimed at providing relief for those with aches and
pains. It can also assist anyone who still exercises and wants to combat the
effects of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS).
You can enter the competition via post, online at:-
OlderActives.Co.UKk or call
them on:- 0845 505 0090 for more information.
Postal entries can be sent to:- Ateronon,
CamNutra Ltd, Bishop Bateman Court, Thompson Lane, Cambridge, CB5 8AQ.
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