http://www.justgiving.
In January our Head Coach Jammie Dodger suggested that we should skate an endurance race. There was a mixed reaction to this announcement. Some chomping at the bit to take on a challenge. Some pensive, almost reticent. And some said, “hell no- this ain’t for me, not on your nelly, no sir-ee bob”.
One of our bouts fell through in May so this was the ideal opportunity to take on the Skate Mania organised race at the Preston Sports Arena. So on the 12th of May 2013 the Nottingham Roller Girls and Gringos will be hitting the tarmacadam and skating either a half, or full marathon.
We figured that if we are going to bust a gut and skate a marathon, we better raise some dosh for charity in the process. Unless you have been under a rock of late, you will have heard in the press about the current round of government cuts, particularly to support services. Not to mention the introduction of PIP (Personal Independent Payments) and ATOS disability assessments, that set to adversely affect many of the most vulnerable members of our society. This made our decision to support the local charity Inspire Nottingham all the more easy. Here’s a bit about them…
Inspire was set up in 1999 in response to unmet need for people with learning disabilities who were falling through the net of other provision. Inspire has a Trustee Board who are supported by a team of 10 part time staff who have experience of service delivery in a wide range of settings. Staff work with volunteers and students on placement to ensure that Inspire members have a great learning experience.
The organisation is located in the International Community Centre, which is close to Nottingham City Centre. The centre is open to a great variety of other community groups and is used as a training venue by different organisations allowing Inspire members to interact and be part of the community. Similarly the Inspire shop located at Shakespeare Street enables Inspire to be located in the community providing the opportunity for social inclusion.
The only thing to do now is to continue with the training preparations. The perpetual winter has started to lift, so the NRG massive may regularly be spotted down the Embankment for a bit of an alfresco skate sesh. With much trepidation we headed down to the Trent the other week on a match day. It was slightly surreal. I felt like I was in an advert for a feminine hygiene product, as directed by Ken Loach. Some of the girls are running, some of them are even doing extra lunges in the park whilst walking the pooch. I’ve no doubt we will get to the end, whether we will be able to walk afterwards is another matter.
So please, please, please, give what you can via our ‘Just Giving’ page. Dig deep; your donations will definitely make us go faster!
GemAargh