Search This Blog

Monday 23 September 2013

A big day for Birthdays



So today, after much secret squirrel whisperings, and much gentle hubris, and many tears from my dear friend, Laura Collins, there is big news.  As you know, dear reader, my time is limited and I have some six months or so left.  So whadda I do?  I agree to launch a charitable project for people with Eating Disorders.....

Today we launch Charlotte's Helix.

Charlotte's Helix is an international collaboration seeking to bring the AN25K genetics initiative to the UK.  (There is some other nonsense about me and advocacy on there but you can ignore all the guffy bits and go straight to the "Donate" or to the "Donate your Birthday" button!)

Basically, this project combines so many things dear to my heart:
  • Hope for people with eating disorders
  • A crack at proper prevention
  • Paying forward all the help, love and support we have received, as a family, to other families
  • Genes stuff, which is dead cool
  • Something to keep Laura occupied
  • A chance for some dear friends to make videos
  • A new Twitter account, FB page and Linked-In stuff
  • An answer to all those "What can I do help?"s that I keep being asked.
It lets me bring together my friends from both sides of my world - virtual and real - and, for that, I am grateful.

Please support this project in any way you can.  Please share on your Facebook page, retweet, link to other friends, sites, people you think may be interested.  Please talk about it.  A lot.  Please like our pages.  A lot.  Please accost random strangers in the street to tell them about it.....er, perhaps not.....Money is always welcome, of course.  So is participation in the project.  I would be as delighted to see people signing up to give a vial of blood, as £££.

Other important things to note.  The logo was designed by Emily and tweaked, coloured and set by Liana.  Thank you both - you make a great team.  An amazing amount of hard work from Laura (I'm polishing her halo), Cindy Bulik who is like a boulder rolling down a mountain once started - an unstoppable force, the amazing F.E.A.S.T., who have, as always, been so supportive - yet another happy parent, Susan Ringwood of Beat, who knows the rules and regs and money handling issues inside out and worked so hard for us and Rose, who has agreed to head up the fundraising for us.
I would also like to thank all our supporters, our video makers, our desks (for letting us bang heads frequently without complaining) and our families for putting up with us.  You are all making a huge difference to thousands of people's lives.

https://www.facebook.com/charlotteshelix
http://www.linkedin.com/company/charlotte's-helix
https://twitter.com/HelixAN25

As you were, people

2 comments:

  1. Incredibly wonderful project! I'll be sending some money. Thank-you, Charlotte, for all that you do as an advocate for excellence and timeliness in treating eating disorders, for parents and sufferers, and for ED research as well!

    I'll see if my daughter wants to donate blood to participate in the US arm of this project!

    Oh, and I love the logo!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Laura told us a bit about the donating birthdays thing last week, and I was going "BUT MY BIRTHDAY IS THE DAY BEFORE THE 23RD I WANT TO DONATE MY BIRTHDAY CAN I DO IT ANYWAY PLEEEEEEEEEEEEASE!!!". Bad timing on my mother's part :P

    I will definitely be promoting the heck out of the project and donating my DNA!

    ReplyDelete