5k 'Talk and Walk' raises £620 for Llanelli chemo unit
Pictured above: Staff from the chemo unit with Tracey John.
Tracey John organised ‘Jo’s 5k Talk and Walk’ in memory of her friend and colleague, Joanne Cross, and raised £620 for the Chemotherapy Day Unit at Prince Philip Hospital.
Tracey works in the Carmarthenshire County Council Commissioning Team as a Quality Monitoring officer for older people’s care homes. She worked alongside Joanne daily for over 16 years.
Tracey said: “I wanted to honour a promise I made to Jo that I would do a 5k walk. A group of Jo's work and lifelong friends and family members joined me, and we called it ‘Jo's 5k Talk and Walk’.
“As we often chatted and walked together, it was an opportunity for us all to be together sharing stories whilst raising money for such worthy causes.
“The Talk and Walk took place on 8th September 2024 in Sandy Water Park in Llanelli. We were able to join at the back of the Parkrun and 5k Walk Your Way. Runners, walkers and volunteers supported us throughout.
“I wanted to fundraise for the Chemotherapy Day Unit at Prince Philip Hospital and Velindre Cancer Centre in memory of my best friend, Jo, as she used both units. She will be forever missed by us all.
“It was a perfect day walking with Jo's family and close friends. We wanted to raise £500 for each unit and managed to raise over £600 for both.”
Nicola Llewellyn, Head of Hywel Dda Health Charities, the official charity of Hywel Dda University Health Board, said: “We’d like to say a very special thank you to Tracey and all those involved in Jo’s 5k Talk and Walk for supporting such a worthy cause in memory of Jo.
“The support of our local communities enables us to provide services over and above what the NHS can normally provide and we are extremely grateful for every donation we receive.”