Shiona Ramage is currently being treated at The Royal Marsden for stage 4 skin cancer. She was referred to the hospital following her diagnosis of melanoma when she was 45 years old in June 2016. Since then, Shiona has completed a number of exciting fundraising challenges, often alongside her friends and family, in support of The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity.
Smashing the fundraising targets
‘Team Shomelanoma’ hit an incredible fundraising milestone of over £100,000 in 2023, and it keeps on rising!
The money raised is supporting melanoma research at the hospital. “It’s safe to say that the care I receive at The Royal Marsden is outstanding and is keeping me alive,” says Shiona. “Channelling my energy into fundraising to support ongoing research projects is my way of saying thank you – giving something back while keeping fit and active doing the challenges I love. The team at The Royal Marsden are right at the forefront of cancer research.”
"I’m so grateful to my family and friends that have undertaken and supported all of these fundraising activities."
A variety of fundraising events
Shiona’s fundraisers in the last few years have included the Welsh 3000s Challenge (climbing all 15 mountain peaks over 3,000 feet in Wales within 24 hours), a 12-hour danceathon, swimming Loch Lomond, hiking 100km on the Jurassic Coast, running the Royal Parks Half Marathon, a comedy evening and a skipathon that involved skipping 10 minutes every day of the month of May.
In September 2022, Shiona and 13 friends also climbed the tallest mountain in North Africa, Mount Toubkal, in support of their research fund.
“The COVID-19 pandemic meant we had to cancel a number of planned challenges and it really underscored the need to support charities more than ever,” says Shiona.
“The highlight of all the challenges has been spending time creating special memories with my incredible family and friends, who have joined me on the amazing adventures which have raised so much money for melanoma research at The Royal Marsden.
My advice to anyone who wants to successfully fundraise for their cause is to share your personal story on why the charity is so important and engage your family, friends and colleagues to support you in the fundraising.
Shiona’s favourite fundraising challenges
“I particularly loved the danceathon and the skipathon, which were lots of fun whilst the Welsh 3000’s and Mount Toubkal were exceptionally tough and stretched us both physically and mentally. The challenges have also given me a huge focus and sense of purpose whilst I have been going through cancer treatment.”
“By doing a variety of challenges and being creative you can involve a lot of people at all ages at different levels. For example, for the danceathon, we had a special children’s hour for friends with young children and this was exceptionally popular.
“In addition, for the skipathon, one of my friends who is a headmistress had her school take part and all of the pupils were skipping for a month and were hugely engaged. I also talked to them about The Royal Marsden and the fundraising activities at their school assembly.
"It’s important to share how the funds raised are being used by the charity with your supporters. I communicate regular updates on the melanoma research projects that the ‘Team Shomelanoma’ fundraising is supporting via my blog and social media channels, and this helps to keep supporters fully informed."
You can support Shiona’s fundraising here. Or you can read her blog.
An incredible event at the BT Tower
Shiona hosted an event at the BT Tower on 12 August 2023 to celebrate reaching £100,000 – it was an emotional celebration with her family and friends.
Shiona says: “Thank you to everyone who has supported The Royal Marsden’s incredible work to transform the lives of more cancer patients so that they also can live their lives to the full, just like me.”
And we want to say a massive thank you to Shiona for her fantastic fundraising and support for the Charity.