This Saturday at 12pm at Nottingham Hockey Centre, Beeston and Loughborough Students are coming together to raise money for a special man connected to both clubs. Martin Dawkins, father of former Beeston and Loughborough goalkeeper Lucy Dawkins has been diagnosed with a Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) brain tumour with a prognosis of ‘terminal’.
The average life expectancy of patients diagnosed with GMB, based on survival rates is between 4 and 14 months following diagnosis. The GBM brain tumour is the deadliest of all tumours….it kills more people than the 120 other types of tumours put together. Now, over 18 months later, and having undergone surgery, radio and chemotherapy, Martin has managed to adjust as close as he can to a ‘normal’ life by returning to his job at the Sports Development Centre, Loughborough University and as a volunteer at Trent Bridge cricket ground, Nottingham. At some point in the future, he is hoping to resume his work as a guest lecturer at Nottingham Trent University.
When Lucy played for both Beeston and Loughborough, Martin would always be one of the most vocal and dedicated of the supporters, travelling home and away to every game. Even now with Lucy retired from hockey, Martin is still a keen watcher of the sport and can often be seen at games supporting both teams.
In the early days following his diagnosis and treatment, Martin admitted they were rather ‘dark’ times, but he was determined to adopt a positive strategy to tackle this disease. His strategy has had many elements including being active as possible – physically and mentally – and concentrating on the positive, enjoyable aspects of life rather than his situation.
Continuing to follow a fit and healthy lifestyle is a vital part of his strategy and in recent months he returned to running and swimming in order to regain his fitness and in September he achieved the remarkable fear of completing The Great North Run. Martin has now re-set his focus on something even more ambitious, completing the London Marathon in 2017.
Martin will be running in support of the John Van Geest Cancer Research Centre, located at Nottingham Trent University. The JVGCC is involved in many areas of cancer research. A recent development has been work undertaken to develop a vaccine that may be effective against the Glioblastoma Multiforme tumour.
He is determined to make a contribution to this vital research work which is entirely funded by donations and sponsorship. 100% of any donations the centre receives are used directly on lifesaving research. This is why both Beeston Hockey Club and Loughborough Students have come together to support Martin and his fundraising efforts.
On Saturday, you will see both teams warming up wearing t-shirts for which every player has made a donation to the John Van Geest Cancer Research Centre, and there will also be a cake sale taking place during and after the game. There will be further fundraising efforts ahead of our Mens 1st XI fixture against Loughborough at Nottingham Hockey Centre in February, and we are hoping to raise over £1000 to support Martin in his fundraising effort for the London Marathon.
Beeston Ladies Manager Chris Glover commented, “Martin has been a huge supporter of Beeston Hockey Club and Loughborough Students and he has contributed a huge amount to sport in the local area and we are delighted to be able to support him and Lucy in this way. We had already decided to put all the match programme donations from the 2016/17 season towards Martin’s fund, but Sophie Robinson our captain wanted to do something even more ambitious which is where the idea of Saturday’s match came from. We are very grateful for the support and help of Laura Myers and the committee from Loughborough who have done a phenomenal amount to sell the t-shirts across their club, and we hope that the game provides a great spectacle, as I know Martin will want us to put on a good show on the pitch!”
If you would like to support Martin’s fund raising efforts come along this Saturday and look out for further opportunities at our second event in February.
To watch a video about Martin and for more information on the research follow these links:
WATCH: Notts man with terminal brain cancer preparing to run for charity in London Marathon
Scientists working to develop new vaccine for most deadly brain tumour
