Alice’s Arc was delighted to a host a charity fire walk in conjunction with Sevenoaks Town Council. The event took place on the Vine Gardens on Saturday 2nd February 2019. 45 people walked across fire, including the Sevenoaks Mayor and the founders of Alice’s Arc. Over 100 spectators braved the snowy conditions in support of the event which raised money for Alice’s Arc and the Sevenoaks Powerchair Football Club. The event was kindly sponsored by local businesses – Better Body Group, Kall Kwik, Manak Solicitors and Specsavers.
Alice’s Arc aims to find a cure and less harsh treatments for the childhood cancer called rhabdomyosarcoma. It also supports the children and families affected by childhood cancer disease. The funds raised will go towards funding the salary of a research role at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR). The research team are studying the molecular biology of rhabdomyosarcomas in order to discover more targeted treatments.
Alice’s Arc was founded by the parents of a local girl who was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma at age 3. Alice suffered a relapse at age 6 and is currently 7 years old and cancer free. Her battle with this cancer is under the care of Great Ormond Street Hospital and has involved chemotherapy, proton radiation in the US and surgery and further radiation in Amsterdam. The charity funds work at the Institute of Cancer Research, in particular providing money to cover researcher staffing costs and equipment. It also works with Great Ormond Street Hospital to fund roles such as Research Nurses. The charity also provides funds to patients to obtain drugs which ease the treatment process.
Sara Wakeling, Co-founder of Alice’s Arc said:
“ A fire walk seemed like a fitting event to raise much needed funds for children fighting cancer. When you’ve seen a child go through cancer treatment a walk on fire is like a walk in the park in comparison. We’d all walk across fire any day to find a cure for our children. We are absolutely delighted with the huge sum of money raised and so thankful to all the fire walkers and all the supporters who donated and supported us on the night. The funds raised will no doubt make a difference to those children who will fight rhabdomyosarcoma in the future.”
