The Elves and The Shoemaker raises £2,000 for Nicki’s Smile!
01/10/2013
The Radlett Theatre played host to a production of ‘The Elves and The Shoemaker’ on 29th September that delighted the sell-out 300 strong audience whilst raising funds and awareness for Nicki’s Smile.
Reworking a classic Brothers Grimm children’s tale the Stuff and Nonsense Theatre Company put on a show including music, puppets and comedy that entertained all the family.
With the many children in attendance occasionally on the edge of their seats, and frequently off them, shouting encouragement at our heroes Sam and Belinda it was the presence of the Elves that really captivated their attention. There will have been more than a few requests for magic shoes and Elves on the car journeys back to reality after the show.
Cycling from Bucharest to Budapest: £2,500 raised
11/08/2013
If you fly from Bucharest to Budapest it will take you just under two hours. Or you can cover the 850km by bike in 6 days, with no support.
Richard Haring chose the latter option and whilst struggling up the Transylvanian hills in 35C heat he realised someone should be benefitting from his pain and decided to raise money for Nicki’s Smile, a cause close to his heart. In just a few days he’s raised £2,500 and you can continue to donate here: https://www.justgiving.com/Richard-Haring
No stranger to reassembling his bike in foreign lands, carrying his own luggage and handling his own repairs, you could previously have spotted Richard wending his way through the Balkans or the Caucasus amongst other far-flung outposts.
For Richard the pleasure in undertaking a challenge that most readers would consider more akin to punishment is myriad, “I love waking up not knowing where I’m going to sleep. I love not knowing how the day will pan out. I love seeing ordinary people happily living their lives as I pass by on my bike. I love the physical challenge of cycling great distances. I love climbing the mountains. I love the feeling of the hot sun on my skin. I love listening to my music. I love daydreaming as I cycle. I love trying to speak a new language. I love trying the local food.”
The best part of Richard’s day on this trip would come, perhaps unsurprisingly, towards the end, “Cycling at about 6pm each day is always a pleasure. The sun is setting and you can feel that the locals are finishing their working days. The road is quieter, the temperature cools (albeit only slightly to about 30C!) and the cycling is very peaceful. I always find some extra energy from somewhere.”
Bucharest to Budapest wasn’t all plain cycling though with the hardest part being, as Richard explains, when “I cycled 15km slowly up a gravelly dirt track only to be told I had gone the wrong way and had to cycle back the 15km to get back on track. 30km of unnecessary cycling is mentally tough to deal with when you’re cycling 140km per day.”
As for the next challenge? “Almost certainly Africa, although I’m undecided where exactly. I have a couple of routes planned in my mind, but I’ll see how I feel nearer the time and make a decision.”
Nicki’s Smile presents ‘The Elves and The Shoemaker’
02/07/2013
Have your children heard the one about the elves and the shoemaker? Well, now’s their chance!
Nicki’s Smile is presenting ‘The Elves and The Shoemaker’ at the Radlett Centre.
This staged adaptation of the classic children’s story will be retold with stunning puppets, music and surprises aplenty in a show for everyone aged 3 and above.
Tickets are available now from the Radlett Centre Box Office on 01923 859 291, priced at £15 each. The fun starts at 14:00 on Sunday 29 September 2013. For more information and to book online please visit the website:
http://www.radlettcentre.co.uk/What-s-On/Children/The-Elves-And-The-Shoemaker
Nicki’s Smile – Marathon Update
25/04/2013
They may not have crossed the finish line first but the Nicki’s Smile runners will have felt like winners by raising an incredible £39,000 at the 2013 London Marathon.
On an unexpectedly warm spring day nearly 40,000 runners took to the streets of London including eight wearing the purple of Nicki’s Smile and Pancreatic Cancer UK. They were cheered on by half a million people who lined the route to offer their support as well as soak up the sun.
The team from XL Insurance who have chosen Nicki’s Smile as their UK Charity of the Year included James Martin, Philip Hogg, Claire Paternoster, James Benn and Teresa Ngeow and were led home by the speedy Jack Morris in a time of 3h 15m.
James Martin, Teresa Ngeow, Jack Morris, Claire Paternoster and Philip Hogg of Team XL
After he had recovered his breath, team leader James Martin commented, “That has to be the toughest physical and mental challenge I have ever faced but was also one of the best days of my life. The atmosphere and support from the crowds all the way along the route was simply unbelievable. Plus we mustn’t forget that we’ve raised a huge amount of money for charity which was a huge motivator on the day. We are all extremely grateful to everyone who sponsored us. Now I think we all deserve a bit of a rest, and maybe a couple of beers.”
James Martin
Claire Paternoster and Teresa Ngeow
Marc Cane also shared his thoughts, “A massive thank you to those who sponsored me to run this year’s London Marathon, the money will help to conduct vital research into Pancreatic Cancer. Without the support of the many donors and the estimated 500,000 spectators I couldn’t have completed the 26.2 miles. All those people cheering my name around the course and particularly my friends and family at the key stages of half way and near the end made it a very emotional and exciting experience. I can’t wait to run it again!”
Marc Cane
Rob Fosterman had the marathon under control, at least for a period, “I found it great until about mile 16 and was on pace with my timings, but the warm weather, the need to take on more liquid and the lack of shade made it tough, both physically and mentally.”
Rob Fosterman
However help was on hand from the famously supportive London crowd and also an unexpected source, “Once I passed mile 23 and hit the Embankment it was fine, as you know you are near the end. I took my headphones off and just let the crowd take me home and tried to pick up my pace as much as my body would let me. That is definitely the best part, but it is tough to enjoy. Having Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal and England) hand me a Lucozade and tell me to keep going was a nice touch!”
Rob summed up what running for Nicki’s Smile meant for him, “You remember it is for a great cause, people have been incredibly generous with their sponsorship – which I am grateful for, and it really is a great thing to have done and a great cause to raise money for.”
If you are interested in being part of the Nicki’s Smile team for the 2014 London Marathon then please contact info@nickissmile.com for more information.
Running for Nicki’s Smile!
16/04/2013
The final training runs have been completed and with the London marathon just five days away eight athletes are now set to raise thousands of pounds for Nicki’s Smile.
The effort is spearheaded by the team from XL Insurance who have chosen Nicki’s Smile as their UK Charity of the Year and consisting of James Martin, Philip Hogg, Claire Paternoster, James Benn, Teresa Ngeow and Jack Morris have together raised over £30,000.
Team XL – left to right; Jack Morris, Claire Paternoster, Teresa Ngeow, Philip Hogg, James Martin and James Benn
Whilst for some of the XL Insurance team it will be their first experience of running 26.2 miles for Teresa Ngeow it will be her seventh marathon in total and second of the week after successfully completing the Brighton marathon on Sunday!
With Rob Fosterman and Marc Cane also running the marathon and Debbie Ferrer running the BUPA 10k in May a further £5,000 should be added to the total with the combined efforts of all the athletes meaning that over £35,000 is set to be raised for Nicki’s Smile.
Through a seemingly never-ending winter the Nicki’s Smile runners have endured wind, rain, snow and freezing temperatures as well as overcoming numerous injuries in an effort just to arrive at the start line. Running his second marathon, and with both knees bearing scars of serious operations, Rob Fosterman certainly won’t miss 20 mile training runs through a blizzard and is looking forward to a drop of alcohol as he crosses the finish line.
Neither beating the course record of 2h 4m 40sec nor running further than Mo Farah in his London (half) marathon debut have been the motivation for the hundreds of miles covered during training. Each athlete has their own personal reasons for running – whether it’s ticking something off a bucket list or proving their spouses wrong – and also their own reasons for wanting to support Nicki’s Smile.
This is a subject especially close to home for some of the team who either knew Nicki or have lost close family or friends to pancreatic cancer. As they have learnt more about Nicki’s Smile and about pancreatic cancer they have become even more motivated to raise funds for research into early diagnosis techniques and help improve the horrifying survival statistics: more than 8,350 people in the UK are diagnosed every year and of these, fewer than 20% survive more than 12 months and only around 4% survive for 5 years or more.
The support on the streets of London for the runners on race day is legendary and James Martin commented on the support that the XL Insurance runners had received in the build-up, “The team has been overwhelmed by the support they have received from friends, family and colleagues all around the world and want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has sponsored them so far.”
There are still five days to contribute on one of the links above and you can also come down and support the whole team on Sunday. Nicki’s Smile will be tweeting from the marathon so follow us @NickisSmile and don’t forget to tell us where you’re standing on the course on the big day.
Marc Cane
Debbie Ferrer
Nicki’s Smile Research Project Update
11/03/2013
By Dan Summers, Nicki’s Smile committee member
In July 2012 Nicki’s Smile committed £125,000 to a research study aimed at the earlier detection of pancreatic cancer. On 29 January 2013 I visited Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL), New York where this research is being conducted under the supervision of Dr David Tuveson MD, PhD.
On a cold winter’s day I took the Long Island Rail Road out of Penn station, Manhattan, arriving one hour later at CSHL’s scenic main campus which spans approximately 120 acres along the western shore of Cold Spring Harbor on the north shore of Long Island.
Since being founded in 1890, CSHL has been home to eight Nobel laureates including Dr. James Watson, co-discoverer of DNA’s double helix. Today CSHL is a preeminent international research institution, achieving breakthroughs in molecular biology and genetics and enhancing scientific knowledge worldwide.
My host for the day was Dannielle Engle, a postdoctoral fellow, who explained that the summer of 2012 saw her initial challenge being to facilitate the relocation of the Tuveson laboratory to CSHL from Cambridge University. The transfer was finally completed in August, moving in to the recently opened Leslie and Jean Quick Laboratory, but two months later Hurricane Sandy led to the temporary suspension of operations. Fortunately CSHL survived the elements intact and subsequently supported other cancer research facilities in the New York area get back on their feet after power outages led to the loss of research.
During the tour of the state-of-the-art laboratory and campus it was explained to me that the study focusing on pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer that Nicki’s Smile is helping to fund has two aims. The first is to create a model that can produce circulating blood proteins similar to the main tumour marker (CA19-9) used in the clinical management of patients with pancreatic cancer. The second is to use this model to look for novel diagnostic biomarkers. Whilst still at an early stage of model development and validation the overall goal is develop these biomarkers through clinical testing as a test for pancreatic cancer detection and treatment monitoring.
The immediate challenges in the coming months include continued development of the modeling process and boosting the number of staff working in the Tuveson laboratory. With thanks to Dannielle Engle and the team at the Tuveson laboratory for their hospitality and taking time out of their research to show me around the impressive facilities at CSHL.
Vinson & Elkins choose Nicki’s Smile as their UK Charity of the Year for 2012
05/03/2013
Nicki’s Smile, which is a fund of Pancreatic Cancer UK, is delighted to announce that for the past year they have been working with Vinson & Elkins as the firm’s UK Charity of the Year for 2012. The firm has already raised £5,000 for Nicki’s Smile!
Vinson & Elkins is a global law firm, with its headquarters in Houston, Texas. The firm currently has approximately 700 lawyers.
Dan Blake, Chair of Nicki’s Smile said, “We are extremely grateful to the UK office of Vinson & Elkins LLP for choosing us as their Charity of the Year. We are delighted to be associated with this prestigious firm and very much appreciate their fundraising efforts.”
Susan Curtis-Griffiths, Director of Administration – EMEA & Charity Co-ordinator, Vinson & Elkins LLP commented, “We are delighted to support Nicki’s Smile and help raise much needed funds for their early diagnosis initiatives”
For further information, please contact info@nickissmile.com
Nicki’s Smile Supper Quiz Raises Over £6,000
10/02/2013
On 18 November 2012 more than 300 people packed out Hasmonean Girls’ High School in Mill Hill, London for a supper quiz to raise money for Nicki’s Smile. The event raised more than £6,000 and has taken fund raising past the £300,000 mark since the fund launched in early 2011.
The quiz, featuring teasers such as “To the best of our knowledge what is the nationality of the main character in Jack and the Beanstalk?” was expertly hosted by the incomparable QuizQuizQuiz and carnivores feasted on the gastronomic delicacies provided by The Aviv Restaurant.
Dan Blake, Chair of Nicki’s Smile, said: “The last two years have been incredibly difficult, but it is comforting to see how successful our events have been and that an incredible amount of money has been raised in Nicki’s memory”.
Running with the Olympic Torch- A day I’ll never forget
25/07/2012
It was an incredible honour to be chosen to run with the Olympic Torch on Monday 23rd July.
Sadly, and as the followers of Nicki’s Smile know, there is a tragic story behind my nomination. To give you some background, here is the nomination application from my mum, taken from the London 2012 torchbearer website:
“My son`s young wife died of cancer in November 2010 aged 33. As well as leaving him absolutely devastated he was faced with the daunting task of bringing up a bereft 3 year old son. In the past months he has pushed himself to the limits in his role as a single parent. His strength has been incredible to behold. When his wife became ill he shouldered his responsibilities unwaveringly. He cared for her with unending love and devotion and was by her side every single step of the way, never missing a single hospital test or treatment.
He has now adopted such a role with his young son Joshua and has given up his career in the city while he ensures that Joshua has a loving and stable home. And through all of this he has never once complained about his lonely and difficult situation. He has set up a charity in memory of his beloved wife ring- fenced by Pancreatic Cancer U.K. and has already raised a considerable amount of money towards ensuring earlier diagnosis of this terrible disease. The charity is called Nicki`s Smile (www.nickissmile.com) because that is what she did until the day she died, never complaining or asking why.
I feel that if he were lucky enough to be chosen to bear the torch it would be an amazing symbol of hope for him and would also show that he and Joshua, are carrying her light & legacy forward. He is determined, that by trying to help others beat this awful disease then Nicki did not die in vain.”
So what’s a day in the life of a torchbearer like?
It was a particularly early start as Channel 5 News had kindly offered to follow me on the day. I must thank their Senior Programme Editor Richard Zackheim for arranging this. The help and support Channel 5 News has provided in raising the profile of Nicki’s Smile has been phenomenal.
Filming commenced at 6.30am and I then departed for my torchbearer meeting point in Croydon. The nerves were really starting at this point as the sheer enormity of the occasion suddenly dawned on me. I donned my uniform and then met and chatted to my fellow torchbearers.
I was slightly surprised by the eclectic mix of torchbearers. Some were rightly chosen for their incredible community and voluntary sector efforts. Others were chosen for very different reasons – they were board members of global corporations. A sign of the sponsorship times we live in. We were joined by one celebrity, Sir Patrick Stewart and he was incredibly moved by the occasion.
After meeting and greeting, we were given a briefing by the 2012 torch team. It wasn’t rocket science, but we were advised where to stand, how to hold the torch and how fast we should walk/jog. We were then taken to our torchbearer bus and departed for our drop-off locations. We were all overwhelmed by the incredible public turnout. As I reached my drop-off in the busy Pedestrianised Shopping Area, the crowd was so deep the bus struggled to pass!
I left the bus to rapturous applause from my fellow torchbearers and entered a cauldron! I couldn’t believe how many people had come to see me run! I was quickly mobbed my people wanting their photo with the torch. I duly obliged and then realised how famous people must feel whenever they go out in public.
My few moments of fame had arrived. I could see the previous torchbearer running towards me and I was then beckoned into position. We shared a ‘torch kiss’ and after posing for media photos I then set off on my 280 yard journey.
At this point the nerves had evaporated. I was soaking up the incredible atmosphere, waving to one and all in the crowds. I spotted my family and friends but was unable to stop. Before I knew it, my run was over and I passed the flame to the next torchbearer. As I was whisked onto my torchbearer bus I saw many familiar faces in the crowd! They started chanting my name and everyone else followed! It spread to the rest of the surrounding crowd and I was left speechless. What a few moments of fame!
I was presented with my torch at the drop-off point and after finishing the Channel 5 News interview I then met up with my family before heading home.
It meant the world to me to be a torchbearer. The sole reason I was chosen was because of Nicki’s passing and how I am treasuring her memory through my charitable efforts.
It was an incredible and emotional day. I was really touched to see so many members of my family and friends and the thousands of local residents that came to support me. It was fantastic to see so many Bushey congregants there. I will never forget the way Rabbi Richards and others led the crowd in chanting my name!
The atmosphere was electric. I was carrying the torch for Nicki and I know she was smiling down on a truly beautiful day. The torch will be passed down through the generations and treasured for eternity. It was a day I will never forget.
Nicki’s Smile contributes to major research study to identify pancreatic cancer earlier
12/07/2012
Nicki’s Smile, a fund of Pancreatic Cancer UK, is delighted to announce it is to contribute £125,000 to a research study that is aimed at identifying pancreatic cancer earlier.
The study, led by Dr David Tuveson MD, PhD, will include a focus on pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer and has two aims. The first is to create a model that can produce circulating blood proteins similar to CA19-9, which is the main tumour marker used in the clinical management of patients with pancreatic cancer. The second is to use this model to look for novel diagnostic biomarkers. The overall goal is develop these biomarkers as a test for pancreatic cancer detection and treatment monitoring.
The proposal for this research was peer reviewed by our Scientific Advisory Board and has been rated as internationally competitive or higher.
The research will be conducted in collaboration with Professor Martyn Caplin, who was Nicki’s consultant. He holds the position of consultant in gastroenterology and hepatobiliary medicine and lead neuroendocrine clinician at the Royal Free Hospital in London. The work will commence in August and will be based at Professor Tuveson’s new laboratory at Cold Spring Harbor, New York with close links to the team staying in Cambridge who are completing the first part of the work.
Dan Blake, comments, “I am thrilled that Nicki’s Smile has been able to fund a pioneering early diagnosis research project. Our aim is to improve the awful pancreatic cancer survival statistics and the key to this is innovative early diagnosis research. I am also delighted that Nicki’s consultant, Professor Martyn Caplin, will be involved to provide his invaluable input on neuroendocrine tumours.”
Alex Ford, Chief Executive, Pancreatic Cancer UK, adds, “I am delighted we have been able to finalise this grant, which is in line with the objectives of the Nicki’s Smile fund and provides us with a very effective blueprint for any international grants we award in the future.”
This grant demonstrates our commitment to funding the best quality research across the world. Although Professor Tuveson is based in the US, the results will be of benefit to all patients whether in the UK or elsewhere. This could provide a great step forward in driving early detection and therefore potentially improved prognosis and treatment.