Wednesday 25 March 2015

Marlow Win the Mini Tournament Cup 2015


The Harry Mills Memorial Cup was presented to Marlow the winning under 12s team at the annual Mini Rugby Tournament.  The event held at Marlow HQ at Riverwoods, 21st - 22nd March is the largest mini rugby event in the South East.  Marlow Under 12's gave a cracking performance scoring 22 tries and conceding only 2 throughout the tournament.

The cup was presented by old mates of Harry's George Harjette and Henry Taylor both of whom played rugby with Harry at Marlow. They are now successful players with George playing for Durham University and Henry Saracens.  It is so wonderful for Harry to be remembered with this cup and it must have been a emotional moment for George and Henry.

Henry commented: "It was an absolute honour to do! I had a great day in the sun, watched the final and caught up with all the young lads afterwards. Great to see how strong the connection is between the club and memory of Harry! I was so impressed with how well the whole day was organised and will definitely be doing my best to get there next year. If I can help with anything else let me know? I have tweeted about the charity and #wheresourvaccine"

George added: It was mine and Henry's pleasure to present the award and it was the icing on the cake that Marlow won, which made both Henry and I very happy indeed!

Erica Ferguson Manager of the under 12's minis commented "We had a lovely day and hope we did you and Harry proud".  Erica arranged for the boys to be photographed with a #wheres our vaccine poster to support the campaign to introduce a vaccine for Meningitis B - the strain that took Harry.


George Harjette and Henry Taylor with Ben Ferguson 



Harry's Socks


Winners








Monday 2 March 2015

#WheresOurVaccine?


Richard and Judi have written to their MP Dominic Grieve to ask for help in ensuring the long overdue introduction of the meningococcal Group B (MenB) vaccine.
MenB has for decades been the single largest cause of meningitis in the UK. Young children and adolescents are most at risk. It leads to death in 10% of all cases and to long-term after effects in a further 36%.  Department of Health (DH) surveys have consistently shown that it is the most feared of all illnesses by the parents of young children in our country and each year it costs the NHS millions of pounds in medical litigation.
A vaccine against MenB which was recommended by the Joint Committee for Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) on 21 March 2014 to be routinely given to children in the UK, but almost a year on there are no signs that the vaccine will become part of childhood immunisation programme anytime soon. Meanwhile cases of MenB continue to occur and babies, children and adults are dying and being badly disabled as a result.
Charity Meningitis Research Foundation has launched the #WheresOurVaccine campaign to bring pressure to bear to introduce the life-saving vaccine as soon as possible.
Richard and Judi say: “We are supporting the #WheresOurVaccine campaign because our son Harry died of Group B Meningococal meningitis and septicaemia in 2007 when he was 11 years old. Judi can still remember taking him to our GP’s surgery for his meningitis jab when he was just a toddler and left feeling sure Harry was safe but unaware there were different strains.  Almost a decade later another nurse tried to comfort us as Harry lay on a hospital bed in intensive care dying of Meningitis B.  Harry’s life was extinguished in a single day by this terrible disease, because it is so difficult to detect we believe a vaccine is the only way to fight and eradicate this strain of Meningitis.”
The good people of Marlow and many others – some around the world – have raised in excess of £130,000 in memory of Harry and it would be a wonderful achievement for them and of course Harry for this vaccine to be introduced.
Please help with this campaign and visit

Harry Mills Team Maker Award - Youth Sports Trust 2014




Winner Rob Bellany

Richard and Judi were unfortunately unable to present Harry's Team  Maker award personally. We would like to congratulate Rob on this achievement and wish him all the very best for the future in the sport of volleyball - we will look out for him.

Ali Oliver Chief Executive, Youth Sport Trust kindly sent us these words….

This year we evolved and expanded the camp to include nearly 350 young people who were a mix of young talented athletes, coaches and officials. We were keen to enable young people to explore the relationships between these 3 roles in sport from a young age and wrestle with some of the moral and ethical decisions they each face in performing their role in sport. As you can imagine it was a fascinating 4 days in Loughborough with the usual Youth Sport Trust mischief thrown in!

The award was again presented to a young person who, through their actions, creates an environment that allows each person within their team to flourish and grow: this person is a team maker.

The 2014 Winner was Rob Bellamy a special young man from the sport of Volleyball. Below is the citation for Rob’s nomination:

Rob really grew and developed over the four days, and proved himself as a young person who had his team at the heart of everything he did. Rob went out of his way to bring the Volleyball coaches, officials and athletes together, and demonstrated a real empathy for the different individuals, and the role s they played in the team, across the camp and his sport. Rob was nominated by his peers for the award because of his commitment and dedication for his sport, and the role he played in bringing people together.

The photograph shows Rob receiving his award from the Vice Chancellor of Loughborough University Robert Allison, and the Secretary of State for Education and MP for Loughborough, Nicky Morgan.

Many thanks to the Youth Sports Trust for remembering Harry with this wonderful award.




Monday 22 April 2013

Bander Raises £1500 for Meningitis Vaccines







Bander from Marlow has completed the Paris Marathon in 3 hours 43 minutes and raised nearly £1500 for Meningitis Research Foundation.  His JustGiving page can be found here.  Bander said he wanted to do his bit to raise some money for Harry - he has certainly done this with a very generous sum of money.  Thanks to all



Tuesday 15 January 2013

Youth Sport Trust - Harry Mills Team Maker Award



Andy Farrell - Sophie Carrigill - Judi - Richard - Eleanor Harding and Graham Rowntree

The Youth Sport Trust kindly invited us to the National Talent Orientation Camp at Loughborough University to present the Harry Mills Team Maker Award.  We were especially proud to make this award to such worthy winners – Sophie Carrigill and Eleanor Harding.  Both have kindly commented on the awards.....

Sophie comments – “I was in a car accident in August 2010 when I was 16 and I suffered a spinal injury, leaving me paralysed, amongst many other life threatening injuries.  Before the accident I was a very sporty girl, competing at high levels in netball and also playing hockey and tennis for my school.   After the accident, I was determined to get back into sport and decided to try wheelchair basketball a year after my accident.  I instantly loved it, even though I was very stubborn to begin with, and didn't like being terrible at it. I quickly progressed though having already learnt a lot of the skills due to my sporting back ground.  I was invited to an Open Women’s Camp and since then I have been selected to attend HPCs (High Performance Centres) with GB athletes, to train with the squad, also to more Women's Camp and I have recently played for the Coyotes team which are the GB Women's Team that play in the National League.  My dream goal is to be selected for a Paralympics to represent my country and I'm so determined to achieve that dream”

Eleanor – “I can't begin to put into words how truly honoured I feel to have been given such heartfelt and emotive recognition for something that I care so deeply about.  It is a poignant reminder that will stay with me forever, of the incredible young people that sport has to offer - of which I have no doubt Harry was one. The enthusiasm and passion radiating from all the young coaches was energising and inspiring and I sincerely look forward to being able to work with such people again”

The awards were made with Graham Rowntree and Andy Farrell coaches from the England RFU.  Both also gave a fascinating question and answer session with Baroness Sue Campbell CBE Chair of the Youth Sport Trust.

It is especially moving for us and a great salute to Harry for us to be making this award to such inspirational athletes.

With Harry being a keen rugby player it seemed his spirit was with us as we presented the awards in the company of Graham Rowntree and Andy Farrell.






Thursday 29 November 2012

Richard and Judi Present Cheque to the Youth Sports Trust


A cheque for nearly £8000 was presented to the Youth SportsTrust on November 7th at Newbury Racecourse, during the closing dinner of the first of this year's Raising Achievement conferences.  This was funds raised from Harry’s Lunch and Pirate Day.   Please visit the Youth Sports Trust web site for more details.

Wendi Parcell whose daughter Livvie was best friends with harry was the inspiration for Harry’s lunch and in partnership with Judi raised this sum of money.  Unfortunately Wendi at the last minute was unable to make the presentation – needless to say many thanks to Wendi for her dedication to Harry’s Lunch.  Pictured below is Wendi with husband Graham whose business The James Consultancy sponsored the Lunch.

The Youth Sports Trust present the Harry Mills Team Maker Award each year and will be doing so in January 2013 where Richard and Judi will present the award.  For more information please click here.

Wednesday 28 November 2012

New meningitis vaccine one step closer

Richard and Judi visited the Institute of Child Health and met members of the MRF at a leading research project. We were very privileged to meet lead researchers working at the cutting edge of life saving research, Professor Nigel Klein – Head of Dept. Of Infection at the Institute of Child Health – who also is a clinician at Gt. Ormond St Hospital and Dr Garth Dixon – Lead Clinician for the Dept. Of Microbiology, Virology and Infection and Prevention Control.



Understanding of the disease and the development of a vaccine is a complex task. The many strains of the disease, its ability to evade detection and change over time makes this an extremely difficult task.

We both really appreciated the time taken to explain the research and the new vaccine. The MRF are the leading researcher into Meningitis B and the donations through Harry’s Fund have been so important in this research and will continue to be so in the future as more vaccines are developed.

The following press release is from the MRF:-

Leading meningitis charity Meningitis Research Foundation (MRF) has welcomed the news that a potentially lifesaving vaccine to prevent MenB is one step closer with today’s positive opinion by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

The vaccine, 4CMenB produced by Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Limited is the first ever vaccine against meningococcal B meningitis and septicaemia (MenB) designed to cover most strains of the disease in Europe.

MenB is responsible for an average of 1870 cases across the UK each year, mostly in young children. Around 1 in 10 people affected will die, and a further 1 in 10 survivors will be left with serious after-effects, such as limb amputations, deafness, blindness, and brain damage.

The new vaccine will require a licence from the European Commission before European governments can consider it for implementation. The UK Government takes vaccination advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. If they recommend the new MenB vaccine, the earliest it could be implemented in the UK would be the end of 2013.

Chris Head, Chief Executive of Meningitis Research Foundation said: “ We have a vision of a world free from meningitis and septicaemia so this news is a huge boost for our members and their families, and for doctors and scientists who have all worked tirelessly against this devastating disease. Since the first meningitis vaccine was introduced in 1992, many strains of meningitis including Hib, MenC and pneumococcal have been dramatically reduced. Once the MenB vaccine is licensed, it is essential that Government give it full consideration as soon as possible, especially given the shocking lifetime costs to people who survive MenB and are left with serious, life-long disabilities. We must not allow children to die from this disease if it can be prevented”

MRF Trustee Professor George Griffin, professor of Infectious Diseases and Medicine at St George’s University of London said: “This vaccine is a real step forward and will have a major impact on MenB cases. However, meningitis will remain a major clinical problem and research into microbial causes continues to be a priority alongside raising public awareness of the symptoms.”

Paralympics reporter and keen equestrian Diana Man (30) from Tunbridge Wells is building a new life after contracting MenB in November 2007 which left her without her lower legs, her fingers and with epilepsy.

She said: “My life has changed a great deal since getting MenB, but I have learned to adjust and manage just like anyone else. If a vaccine has been produced to prevent this disease it should be made available as soon as possible to prevent anyone else having to face the difficulties myself and others face in the future both physically, emotionally and financially.“

For a fact sheet on Men B and for further please visit: www.meningitis.org/MenB

Further photos can be found here

Marlow FM Gems Award

Richard and Judi were the proud recipients of the Marlow FM hidden Gems award.  The award was made for raising £100,000 for Harry's Fund at the Meningitis Research Foundation.  This was presented at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on September 29th 2012.  We would like to thank Marlow FM for making the award.

A very big thank you must also go to all the people, businesses and clubs that have made donations to Harry's Fund.  The generosity, kindness and time that has been given is truly overwhelming.   It is also a tremendous salute to the memory Harry and all he represented in life.

Harry's Lunch 2012



We just wanted to say a huge thank you to those who joined us for Harry’s Lunch and to everyone who has contributed to Harry’s Lunch over the last five years.

It was an amazing event full of love, laughter and plenty of tears! What a very special way to finish Harry’s Lunch.

Please visit the below.

Huge thanks go to Jacob and Alex Jones who said what we all felt, so eloquently. It was so lovely to remember Harry and feel the love and warmth that was evident at the lunch.

Also a big thanks to Olympic Medallist Alex Danson who gave a truly inspirational speech.

Wendi and Judi
The total amount raised for Youth Sport Trust and Bisham Church is £8,980.   This includes  Alex Woolley's fantastic contribution of over £1,300.   Jacob Buckle raised a further brilliant £600 and this has gone directly to Youth Sport Trust.  Fraser Duncan raised £500 at at an event which his team ran for key business contacts.  Fraser says "at the function my boss talked about Harry’s Fund and the associated charities and subsequently everybody dug deep".  Softcat donated nearly £2000  to the lunch and also Pirates Day.

In addition to The Youth Sports Trust £1000 will be donated to to Bisham Church where Harry is buried.

It has been so much fun and a privilege organising Harry’s Lunch for the last five years, working so closely with all those involved.

Thank you all so much for supporting Harry’s Lunch over the last five years - we couldn't have done it without you.

With much love

Wendi & Judi





Thursday 2 August 2012

Tom Norfolk & the Santa Fun Run


In December, Tom, a previous winner of the Spinfield Harry Mills Memorial Cup, took part in the Santa Fun Run organised by the Rotary Club of Marlow. 

He donated half of his sponsorship to Harry & the Youth Sport Trust, and raised £11.

Unfortunately, we do not have a photo of Tom in full Santa gear!! But then again Santa has always been an elusive chap!

Chris Goldson: 16th June 2012 The Incredible Three Peaks Challenge



Chris's Story..
The last time I did something worth sponsoring, I was a silly 9 year-old.
Saturday 16 June sees me and my ITV work chums tackle the Three Peaks Challenge, climbing each of the highest peaks in Scotland (Ben Nevis), England (Scafell Pike) and Wales (Snowdon) in 24 hours.
I'm fundraising in memory of 11 year-old Harry, a family member (my wife Angela is Judi's cousin) who sadly lost his life to a rare form of meningitis in 2007. Harry was a hugely talented sportsman, destined for great things, and he'll be my inspiration as I stagger up these majestic mountains.  
Chris has raised £600 - please visit Chris's fund raising site

National Pirate Day – FST the Group : 25th May 2012


There was swashbuckling galore on Friday May 25th as pirates stormed the bridge and took to the streets of Marlow raising funds for Harry & the Youth Sport Trust.  Yes It was National Pirate Day in Marlow.

Pirates from FST were joined by salty sea dogs from Softcat in Marlow & Manchester – an extract from their newsletter reads…

Grilled grub for me hearties
One highlight o’ this special day be Cap’n Martin Hellawell’s barbecue. Another be a competition for the best-dressed pirate. Aaarrr!
Pieces of eight for a good cause
All employees who remember to dress as pirates will be donatin’ £2 o’ their swag to the Harry Mills Charity. Any poxed blaggard who forgets to dress up will be donatin’ £5 o’ booty instead. 
(Softcat also donated £500 of Capital Bonds to Harry’s Lunch)
Children from Spinfield and Bisham Schools also enthusiastically joined in the fun whilst the Slug & Lettuce held a pirate quiz and Renaissance Hair Salon & the Euro-Japanese Exchange Foundation held cake sales. A total of £3663 was raised.

Pirate Day was the brainchild of Mark Howard at FST – the Group and has been raising funds for charity for the past 4 years. 

Harry's Lunch Menu


Harry’s lunch 26th September 2012


Parmoor

The fifth and final Harry’s Lunch will again be held, organised by Wendi Parcell and Judi.  As in previous years, the lunch will be at St Katharines, a beautiful former nunnery in Parmoor, and the theme will be ‘Celebration’.    


A celebration of Harry’s life.

As 2012’s celebrations include the Olympics, the lunch will be in aid of The Youth Sport Trust and feature the colours gold, silver & bronze.



The YST hold an annual residential training camp for talented young athletes and every year present the Harry Mills Teammaker Award to the athlete who shows the most team spirit by encouraging and motivating fellow team members to succeed.


Alex Danson, the Great Britain Women’s Hockey Team star forward and Olympic medal hopeful, will be attending the lunch. Bisham Abbey has been their training ground in the run up to the Olympics, and we wish them every success in the forthcoming Games. 

To View Harry's Lunch Menu click here 



A donation will also be made to All Saints Church in Bisham in memory of Harry. 

Wednesday 28 March 2012

Harry's Lunch is Featured in the Oxford Transplant Foundation Newsletter


The Oxford Transplant Foundation have featured the very successful Harry's Lunch 2011 in their recent newsletter.