Wheelchair Fundraiser for Jessie now closed
Donation protected
(German version below)
A warm welcome and hello to everyone!
Thank you, for taking the time to visit my page.
My name is Silke and I'm a PA/carer and German teacher based in Gloucestershire/UK.
Those who know me, might have followed my fundraising efforts over the last three years, 100 km in one go by foot in 2017, 2018 and 2019, in order to raise money for different charities.
This year, I had a different path in mind, with the heartfelt wish, to support someone special, a brave and vulnerable young lady in our community here in Cheltenham:
Jessica is twenty three years old and I have been working for her as a personal assistant for four years. As a teenager she developed ME, a condition, that makes life increasingly difficult for her and which has deteriorated over the last years. Even though there's an acknowledgement of her disability, her condition is not very well researched and many things are not paid for by the NHS: this includes her electric wheelchair.
Last year I was going to retire from the organised, long distance walking challenges, but I also felt, that walking is something, that I am good at. Hence my decision to walk the Camino, 500 miles (or 800 km) by myself from the South of France to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. I wanted to fundraise for Jessie and also dedicate the this trek to my Mum Rita, who would love to go on this walk herself, if she could. She is one of my greatest supporters, alongside with my partner Jake and his two children.
But meanwhile, in Germany, my Mum was diagnosed with cancer.
This changed everything for me.
Here is my plan:
Walking to Germany is too far, because it would take away too much time, that I would like to spend with my mum now. Therefore I want to cycle from Cheltenham in order to raise funds for Jessie and finish in Urbar/Koblenz in Germany, to be with my mum and family, after her treatment starts. The distance is over 500 miles or since I work in metrics: 800 km in 8 days. I am starting on Wednesday, 26th August.
I have never been a proper cyclist, but I also haven't been a runner, until I signed up for a half marathon last year and after three months of training I made it in under two hours.
I am determined to make this happen, but I need your help more than ever this time.
I aim for £10 per mile and £5,000 in total, covering some cost for the wheelchair, that Jess urgently needs.
Thank you for considering 'buying a mile' – that means the world to me.
We can show, that help is international and universal, but also local.
We can help one person and not forget about another.
Let's do it.
Please find Jessie's statement below.
Always love.
Silke
PS: I will update you about my training, my amazing supporters and the progress of the tour on Facebook and Instagram.
Jessie, in her own words:
In 2011 I developed Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, a multi-systemic but primarily neuro-immune disease which has absolutely devastated my life. My disease seems to be progressive and I have developed additional related illnesses which have reduced my quality of life even further. All of my physical conditions affect my mobility severely, and in August 2015 I became a power wheelchair user. Thanks to the generosity of several kind donors, I was able to purchase a wheelchair that fully met my needs and gave me a level of freedom and independence that I had lost. Since getting my wheelchair I have driven it 1553 miles, and without it I am almost entirely housebound.
The intended lifespan of my wheelchair is 5 years, which will be this August. We have already replaced the battery and the wheels ourselves in order to expand its life as far as possible. I will continue to use my wheelchair until it no longer runs, which presumably will be in the next couple of years. After that it will need replacing, at an estimated cost of £13,000-14,000. The amazing Silke Schneeweiss after promising she’d give up the superhuman walking, has kindly decided to come out of retirement to cycle to Germany in order to visit the lovely Rita, and simultaneously raise funds towards my next wheelchair. Any donations will be gratefully received and will help ensure that my life remains liveable.
German version:
Herzlich Willkommen auf meiner GoFundMe-Seite.
Mein Name ist Silke und ich arbeite als persönliche Assistentin und Haushaltshilfe für eine junge Frau mit Behinderung. Außerdem bin ich selbstständig als Deutschlehrerin tätig. Ich wohne in Gloucestershire, England.
In den Jahren 2017, 2018 und 2019 habe ich drei organisierte Wanderungen für wohltätige Zwecke unternommen, jeweils 100 km am Stück.
In diesem Jahr möchte ich meine Arbeitgeberin Jessie unterstützen, denn sie benötigt einen neuen Rollstuhl, der vom englischen Gesundheitssystem nicht bezahlt wird.
Jessie ist dreiundzwanzig, und ich arbeite seit vier Jahren für sie. Sie leidet an ME, einer Neuroimmunerkrankung, die ihren Gesundheitszustand über die letzten Jahre stark verschlechtert hat. Ihre Erkrankung und Behinderung sind zwar anerkannt, jedoch nicht umfassend erforscht.
Eigentlich wollte ich nicht mehr wandern gehen, aber hatte mich dann für den Jakobsweg entschieden: Ich wollte 500 Meilen / 800 Kilometer von Frankreich nach Spanien bis nach Santiago de Compostela laufen.
Zwischenzeitlich hat meine Mutter in Deutschland jedoch leider eine Krebsdiagnose erhalten.
Und so habe ich den Plan geändert:
Ich radele von Cheltenham in England nach Urbar (Koblenz) in Deutschland, um Crowdfunding für Jessie zu machen und um meine Mutter zu besuchen, wenn ihre Behandlung angefangen hat.
Ich sollte dazu sagen, dass ich keine großartige Radfahrerin bin, aber ich bin wild entschlossen und habe bereits mit dem Training begonnen.
Mein Crowdfunding-Ziel sind £5,000 als Kostenbeitrag für den Rollstuhl.
Ich starte am Mittwoch, den 26. August 2020 in Cheltenham.
Ich würde mich riesig freuen, wenn ihr ein paar Kilometer 'kaufen' würdet.
Die Strecke ist über 800 km (500 Meilen) – Fähre inklusive.
Bei Rückfragen stehe ich euch gerne zur Verfügung.
Ich werde meine (Tor)Tour ;-) auf Facebook und Instagram dokumentieren.
Updates hierzu folgen in Kürze.
Vielen Dank für eure Unterstützung!
Always love.
Silke
A warm welcome and hello to everyone!
Thank you, for taking the time to visit my page.
My name is Silke and I'm a PA/carer and German teacher based in Gloucestershire/UK.
Those who know me, might have followed my fundraising efforts over the last three years, 100 km in one go by foot in 2017, 2018 and 2019, in order to raise money for different charities.
This year, I had a different path in mind, with the heartfelt wish, to support someone special, a brave and vulnerable young lady in our community here in Cheltenham:
Jessica is twenty three years old and I have been working for her as a personal assistant for four years. As a teenager she developed ME, a condition, that makes life increasingly difficult for her and which has deteriorated over the last years. Even though there's an acknowledgement of her disability, her condition is not very well researched and many things are not paid for by the NHS: this includes her electric wheelchair.
Last year I was going to retire from the organised, long distance walking challenges, but I also felt, that walking is something, that I am good at. Hence my decision to walk the Camino, 500 miles (or 800 km) by myself from the South of France to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. I wanted to fundraise for Jessie and also dedicate the this trek to my Mum Rita, who would love to go on this walk herself, if she could. She is one of my greatest supporters, alongside with my partner Jake and his two children.
But meanwhile, in Germany, my Mum was diagnosed with cancer.
This changed everything for me.
Here is my plan:
Walking to Germany is too far, because it would take away too much time, that I would like to spend with my mum now. Therefore I want to cycle from Cheltenham in order to raise funds for Jessie and finish in Urbar/Koblenz in Germany, to be with my mum and family, after her treatment starts. The distance is over 500 miles or since I work in metrics: 800 km in 8 days. I am starting on Wednesday, 26th August.
I have never been a proper cyclist, but I also haven't been a runner, until I signed up for a half marathon last year and after three months of training I made it in under two hours.
I am determined to make this happen, but I need your help more than ever this time.
I aim for £10 per mile and £5,000 in total, covering some cost for the wheelchair, that Jess urgently needs.
Thank you for considering 'buying a mile' – that means the world to me.
We can show, that help is international and universal, but also local.
We can help one person and not forget about another.
Let's do it.
Please find Jessie's statement below.
Always love.
Silke
PS: I will update you about my training, my amazing supporters and the progress of the tour on Facebook and Instagram.
Jessie, in her own words:
In 2011 I developed Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, a multi-systemic but primarily neuro-immune disease which has absolutely devastated my life. My disease seems to be progressive and I have developed additional related illnesses which have reduced my quality of life even further. All of my physical conditions affect my mobility severely, and in August 2015 I became a power wheelchair user. Thanks to the generosity of several kind donors, I was able to purchase a wheelchair that fully met my needs and gave me a level of freedom and independence that I had lost. Since getting my wheelchair I have driven it 1553 miles, and without it I am almost entirely housebound.
The intended lifespan of my wheelchair is 5 years, which will be this August. We have already replaced the battery and the wheels ourselves in order to expand its life as far as possible. I will continue to use my wheelchair until it no longer runs, which presumably will be in the next couple of years. After that it will need replacing, at an estimated cost of £13,000-14,000. The amazing Silke Schneeweiss after promising she’d give up the superhuman walking, has kindly decided to come out of retirement to cycle to Germany in order to visit the lovely Rita, and simultaneously raise funds towards my next wheelchair. Any donations will be gratefully received and will help ensure that my life remains liveable.
German version:
Herzlich Willkommen auf meiner GoFundMe-Seite.
Mein Name ist Silke und ich arbeite als persönliche Assistentin und Haushaltshilfe für eine junge Frau mit Behinderung. Außerdem bin ich selbstständig als Deutschlehrerin tätig. Ich wohne in Gloucestershire, England.
In den Jahren 2017, 2018 und 2019 habe ich drei organisierte Wanderungen für wohltätige Zwecke unternommen, jeweils 100 km am Stück.
In diesem Jahr möchte ich meine Arbeitgeberin Jessie unterstützen, denn sie benötigt einen neuen Rollstuhl, der vom englischen Gesundheitssystem nicht bezahlt wird.
Jessie ist dreiundzwanzig, und ich arbeite seit vier Jahren für sie. Sie leidet an ME, einer Neuroimmunerkrankung, die ihren Gesundheitszustand über die letzten Jahre stark verschlechtert hat. Ihre Erkrankung und Behinderung sind zwar anerkannt, jedoch nicht umfassend erforscht.
Eigentlich wollte ich nicht mehr wandern gehen, aber hatte mich dann für den Jakobsweg entschieden: Ich wollte 500 Meilen / 800 Kilometer von Frankreich nach Spanien bis nach Santiago de Compostela laufen.
Zwischenzeitlich hat meine Mutter in Deutschland jedoch leider eine Krebsdiagnose erhalten.
Und so habe ich den Plan geändert:
Ich radele von Cheltenham in England nach Urbar (Koblenz) in Deutschland, um Crowdfunding für Jessie zu machen und um meine Mutter zu besuchen, wenn ihre Behandlung angefangen hat.
Ich sollte dazu sagen, dass ich keine großartige Radfahrerin bin, aber ich bin wild entschlossen und habe bereits mit dem Training begonnen.
Mein Crowdfunding-Ziel sind £5,000 als Kostenbeitrag für den Rollstuhl.
Ich starte am Mittwoch, den 26. August 2020 in Cheltenham.
Ich würde mich riesig freuen, wenn ihr ein paar Kilometer 'kaufen' würdet.
Die Strecke ist über 800 km (500 Meilen) – Fähre inklusive.
Bei Rückfragen stehe ich euch gerne zur Verfügung.
Ich werde meine (Tor)Tour ;-) auf Facebook und Instagram dokumentieren.
Updates hierzu folgen in Kürze.
Vielen Dank für eure Unterstützung!
Always love.
Silke
Organizer and beneficiary
Silke Schneeweiss
Organizer
Jo Harvey
Beneficiary