This weekend saw the launch of the 2.6 Challenge, a campaign to save the UK's charities during the pandemic. We have been amazed at how so many of you have taken up the challenge and have been doing such wonderful, and varied things to support our charity.
So far, our 2.6 Challengers have raised over £3000! You can find out more here, or visit bit.ly/2point6FXS to donate or sign up for your challenge.
Included below are some amazing examples of the 2.6-themed challenges that our supporters have taken on.
Connor's Run and Ride
Connor Evans, age 12, decided to take part in the 2.6 challenge, to try and raise money for The Fragile X Society, in honour of his cousins. Connor took on not one, but two 2.6 mile runs, followed by a 26 mile bike ride! In total he raised an astonishing £556. Way beyond anything he ever expected!
You can read Connor's amazing full story here:
Connor's Mum, Cherie, adds:
'We are extremely proud of Connor's efforts during such a difficult time. He can look back at this and know that he really did do something truly wonderful.'
Caroline's Quiz
'Not being regarded as a very sporty person, I wondered how I could support the Fragile X Society and participate in the challenge. Then the idea came to me…. I don’t need to run 26 miles or jump on the spot for 2.6 minutes; I just need to take over our Sunday family quiz evening!! (We had set this up to enable us all to have a weekly get together).
So…..on Sunday 26th April I set 26 questions to our group and asked for a donation to participate. I must emphasise that I did add some sport questions just to keep with the theme, but my favourite section was the Disney themed ones that my 7-year-old granddaughter set and asked! My nephew is normally the quiz master and I didn’t want to usurp him, so he endeavoured to control us all. It was a crazy noisy time with three generations of the family participating, but it was fun and we were able to support a wonderful charity.'
'I appreciate this was low key compared to some of the activities being carried out, but we raised in excess of £130 and I am very grateful to all the family for their support. We are going through such difficult times and it was good to have an hour or so of fun and laughter and raise money at the same time.'
Emily's 100 Miles
Emily McCarthy set herself the extraordinary challenge of running 100 miles in 26 days, and raising funds for The Fragile X Society in the process!
Emily adds, 'There are those that say and those that do. I'm normally the talker - but not this time!'
Rosie's Rounds of the Green
“I have a grandson with Fragile X - a genetic condition which, amongst other things leads to learning difficulties and anxiety. I'm hoping you might help me raise funds for the society, which supports families affected by this condition because, in common with many charities, our fundraising has been hit very hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Society offers support, information and advice to families and individuals and as you can imagine our helpline is particularly busy at this time, offering support to families and individuals who are adjusting to these new and difficult conditions.
So, I'm planning to walk 26 times around the village green in Hilton, near Cambridge, where I’m in ‘lockdown' with my sister and family. My niece, Frances has kindly volunteered to walk with me. One circuit takes around 8.5 minutes, so 26 should take around 2hrs 20 minutes. Not a huge challenge I know, but a gesture and a way to raise awareness of Fragile X. If you are able to help a little, I and the Society, of which I am a Trustee, would be very grateful. Thank you very much!”
So far, Rosie has raised £1,028! We are amazed and so grateful. You can find out more and support her here.
Mabel and Verity’s 26 Days of Challenges
“We are raising money and awareness for the Fragile X Society because we know that sometimes life is hard for people with Fragile X Syndrome (the most common inherited cause of learning disability) and we want to help. The Fragile X Society is a charity that supports families living with fragile X syndrome. My brother has the syndrome and we sometimes find it hard to be his siblings, but we also have great fun with him, he is very funny and likes jokes. We want to help the siblings of other families. We think the Fragile X Society does a lot of good and we want to do good as well. The Society does its bit by holding events for families and it also runs a telephone support line giving advice to families and professionals living and working with Fragile X syndrome.
We can do our bit by raising money and awareness to help keep the charity going. Our cats Dandy and Pepper will feature in a few of our 2.6 challenges because they help our brother calm down when he gets upset, and I love my cats so I want them to feature. Our first challenge is to put on a 26 cat treat marathon! If you haven't heard of this challenge before, it's when you put out 26 cat treats in a line and see which cat eats them the quickest. There will be 26 more challenges over the next 26 days...” See another of their challenges here!
To follow their progress and support Verity and Mabel, visit their page here.
Sega Amusements’ 2.6 challenges!
The team at Sega Amusements (after tackling Pen-Y-Fan Last year) are taking on a variety of challenges, from juggling to dog walking in support of The Fragile X Society.
Here is their fundraising page.
Kirsten’s Ride
Our Chairperson Kirsten Johnson hit the bike for 26 minutes, before nominating others to do the same!
Becky’s 26 Days of 2.6-Themed Challenges
Each day, our current CEO Becky is taking on a challenge themed around the numbers 26 or 2.6, for 26 days starting from 26th April.
“My colleagues are working hard to respond to questions from those affected and provide essential support. I know the importance of this specialist service and want to help it to be able to continue through this pandemic and beyond.”
To follow her progress or to support her efforts, visit Becky's fundraising page.
Alison and Seb's Ball Throwing Challenge
Seb's Mum, Alison, explains, 'Seb has chosen to throw the ball for our dog 26 times a day for the next week. We've both donated £26 to The Fragile X Society to support them in this very lean time.
It's 10 years since Seb's diagnosis and the society and its community is still where I go for advice and a good moan to people who really understand.'
Thank you Alison and Seb! And a special thank you to Alison who is also collecting birthday donations on Facebook.
Anna's Run
Anna took on the challenge of running 2.6 miles, and raising funds for The Fragile X Society in the process. Thank you Anna!
Mandy and Rosie's Walks
Mandy and Rosie have been walking most days and enjoying their time outside. Thank you, Mandy, for donating for your daily walks!
Harry's Drumming
Harry's Mum, Catherine, says, 'This year we supported the 2.6 challenge rather differently! I asked Harry to choose an activity to do to support The Fragile X Society as his twin Zackary had been asked to support his theatre group “Dark Horse Theatre”.
So Harry chose drumming, we found a Fragile X top & set up to do the video. Luckily, it’s electronic so only he hears it through headphones. We only hear tapping!
Both are finding this lockdown difficult, Harry especially as he usually works 2 hours a day for the Medical equipment department of our local hospital. Because of the nature of his job, delivering to wards including ICU (he’d have needed PPE) it was decided he not work for the time being. He really misses his team & doing deliveries around the hospital & cant wait to return. He also loves the Thursday clapping & stands outside with a saucepan & lid shouting “for my team”.'
The Fragile X Society adds, 'We are so grateful to all our 2.6 Challenge participants, who have undertaken some remarkable challenges, raising awareness and funds to help us support our community throughout these difficult times. Thank you!'