MDUK’s fundraising campaign asks people to Go bright for the fight in February by joining people all over the UK wearing their brightest clothes and taking part in brightly-coloured activities. All to help fund research into finding better treatments and cures, and support people living with muscle-wasting conditions.
Bertie Kay has Ullrich congenital muscular dystrophy and his family has joined MDUK’s annual Go bright for the fight fundraiser by wearing bright colours for walks, runs and with plans to get into the kitchen for some colourful baking.
In another twist, there is now a raffle asking people to donate £10 for the chance to win a chef’s knife donated by bladesmith Stuart Ducker, one of Bertie’s uncles, from Retford.
Stuart has developed his skill as a bladesmith in a forge at his home in the last three years. His wife Amanda had already raised £240 before she added the fundraising ask for the knife raffle. She has set up a Facebook fundraiser for Go bright for the fight. So far it has raised £545.
Amanda said:
“For several years, my mum Val, Bertie’s grandma, has held several coffee mornings to fundraise for Go bright for the fight.
As outings to other people’s homes are impossible this year, we came up with some new ideas. Every £10 donation on our Facebook fundraising page will automatically get an entry in to the knife draw. We are trying to post an update in the fundraiser every day with something bright that we are doing.
Stuart said:
“For me, making knives started as a hobby to make kitchen and camping knives. Now it has become half hobby and half commissioned work. My normal job is as a bodywork painter so I’m used to dealing with metal, but this has become so interesting.
“There is a great deal of skill in the geometry of a knife, with a history which goes back thousands of years. I’m particularly interested in the Seax knives made by the Vikings. Theirs is a lost art and I am finding the rediscovery of it absolutely fascinating.”
You can see Stuart’s work on his Instagram page Black Duck Forge.
Charles Horton, MDUK Regional Development Manager for North West England, North Wales and Isle of Man, said:
“It is very impressive to see a family pulling together across different parts of the country, and across the different generations, to come up with such novel and interesting ways of fundraising, particularly during a lockdown.
Bertie has led the way for Go Bright with his fantastic video and the rest of the family are certainly getting involved in such a positive way. The funds they are raising will go towards helping the charity continue its work to support people affected by many types of muscle wasting conditions – my sincere thanks to everyone one of them for their support”.