By Daniel McSweeney
Solihull, England — Avid walkers are pretty much unanimous that ‘nothing puts a spring in your step like walking for a great cause.’ We therefore jumped into our ‘sneakers’ to walk in a Diabetes UK fundraiser organized through National Grid. As Sandra says, ‘Anyone knowing the ravages to the human body this disease can cause will understand the importance of fund raising to support further research and outreach programs.’ The walk is the brainchild of National Grid employee Rashad Ali who is trying to get as many people as possible to donate and perhaps trot out their trainers and join the walk.
For readers who might not know, National Grid is the big British multinational electricity and gas utility headquartered near us in Warwick. The company is not only a major energy player connecting UK customers to energy through its transmission networks; but also in the northeastern United States where it delivers electricity to 3.4 million customers. Like many socially responsible firms, it encourages employees to get involved in their communities – and Rashad this year is focusing on raising funds in the fight against diabetes, an affliction impacting 3.6 million Britons.
Called ‘Le Tour de National Grid,’’ Rashad has pulled together a 2016 event involving a brisk stroll along the canals of the English West Midlands. Altogether, the trek will total about 50 miles – and cover some of the most beautiful English countryside one could ever imagine. We recently joined a 10.4 mile long segment of the summer walk with a few of Sandra’s colleagues from National Grid. Kitted out with rucksacks; bottles of water and fresh fruit, we hiked down the tow road beside the canal stretching from Olton just west of Solihull; south east to the little picturesque village of Lapworth.
Decked out in our turquoise blue ‘Diabetes UK’ tee-shirts, we strolled along the canal that meanders through both heavily populated urban areas as well as rolling English countryside. All the while, the bees buzzed; the waterfowl swam beside us in the canal waters – and at times narrow boats putted by us at a leisurely three miles an hour. And without fail, we were offered friendly waves from canal people on this; one of the nicest summer days in England. One fellow walking along the tow path told us he had the disease – and thanked us for our efforts.
Interestingly enough, diabetes is top of mind in the UK. Britain’s new Prime Minister Theresa May has Type 1 diabetes. And in the media, a documentary titled ‘Fixing Dad’ is getting lots of air time. It tells the story of two young men who refused to let their father die a premature death from diabetes. Geoff Whitington, a self-confessed couch potato openly admits that all he did was ‘come home from work, eat my dinner and go to bed.” He shunned exercise; ate copious amounts of junk food, and was overweight. He seemingly had accepted that surgeons were about to lop off one of his feet from the effects of Type 2 diabetes – a condition diagnosed when he was 51.
His filmmaker sons Ian and Anthony intervened and lovingly whipped him into shape. Eating properly; cycling, camping – and even skydiving – became part of his regimen. And as a result, he is now healthy and in 2014 achieved the goal of riding with his sons in a 100-mile Prudential RideLondon cycling event. They filmed the whole process; and 64-year-old Geoff Whitington and his sons have clearly shown that the disease can be reversed. The reality is that none of us have to run marathons or take part in Ironman competitions to combat this insidious disease. As Diabetes UK says, making small changes in our diets and exercising regularly can ‘significantly improve your health.
We walk a lot these days to help us keep fit. I walk Sandra to work pretty much every day. I meet her at the end of the work day and walk her home. It’s a routine that helps keep us fit and perhaps avoid the onslaught of diabetes. I believe walking is one of the healthiest exercises going – especially for folks like us who are less inclined to climb mountains or skydive. (The latter ain’t gonna happen!) And using walking events like Le Tour de National Grid is a logical fit for both health – and helping raise funds to combat diabetes.
Such ‘walkathons’ date back to the early 1950’s.The first was held in Puerto Rico in 1953; an 80-mile foot journey from San Juan to Ponce by actor Ramon Rivero who raised $85,000 in the fight against cancer. His cross-island efforts helped give birth to a charitable walk culture; and he is considered a national hero in Puerto Rico for this effort and other social activist causes. There are of course all kinds of ‘walks’ and runs across the world. In Canada, the most notable perhaps is ‘The Terry Fox Run’ that since 1981 has raised more than $650 million (Cdn) for cancer research.
We are unable to take part in all of this summer’s walks for diabetes here in the Midlands. At the end of season though, we plan to walk the last 20-mile leg along the canals. On our first walk, we only ran into one problem – a mud hole along the tow path that we all had to walk through or jump in the canal to get around it. That was not an option, so several of us walked up into the bush and discovered the mud was ankle deep there too. I was wearing a brand new pair of white unsullied trainers (sneakers). They now look like footwear spent at the bottom of a bog. None of us though cared about muddying up our footwear. We were having too much fun and messing up our trainers for such a great cause was more than worth it. Both of us can’t wait to get back on the trail again for our ‘big 20-mile walk’ along the canal; this time all the way up to Hatton.
Note: Please visit http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/LeTourDeNationalGrid and consider making a contribution. All monies go directly to the Diabetes Association. And what’s really great is that National Grid provides matching funds raised by its employees.
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