In 1982 when Stephen was 11 his classmate Kate, the first girl he ever liked, died suddenly. She had just started secondary school and should have had the rest of her life in front of her. Stephen learnt that she had died from meningitis, a disease he knew nothing about.
Kate’s Dad also contracted meningitis and was unable to attend his own daughter’s funeral. Stephen later found out that Kate’s Dad had died of meningitis in later life.
“I had never heard of meningitis. The experience really stayed with me.”
Little did he know at the time, but this terribly sad period in Stephen’s life, and the word meningitis, would be brought up again many years later. In 2013 Stephen met Jo and soon fell in love. He also met Charlie, Jo’s 13-year-old son.
When Charlie was 9-months-old Jo had taken Charlie to the GP with flu symptoms. The doctor sent Jo and baby Charlie home, with only a suggestion to give Charlie some Calpol. Jo persisted, as she knew something wasn’t right, and Charlie was eventually rushed to hospital and was later diagnosed with meningitis.
Miraculous recovery
Stephen isn’t religious but, when Jo told him that Charlie went into a coma on Good Friday and woke up on Easter Monday, he couldn’t help but note the miraculous nature of Charlie’s recovery. However, baby Charlie wasn’t out of the woods. Charlie has an Acquired Brain Injury and he has also had a stroke. Stephen says:
“Charlie inspires me every day. Being able to get up and live a “normal life” after everything he’s been through. He’s definitely a huge inspiration for my fundraising for Meningitis Now and to raise awareness of how meningitis affects people’s lives.”
Stephen became a Meningitis Now Trustee in 2022. He applied for the role in the hope of bringing his skills from his day job (running the largest shared service in the NHS) to help Meningitis Now be the best it can be. However, he has been taking on challenge events to fundraise for the charity since 2011.
Leap of faith
Stephen remembers three events he’s particularly proud of out of the many he’s undertaken for Meningitis Now over the years. His first fundraising challenge in 2008 was a true leap of faith, 10,000 feet from the ground! Stephen remembers his solo skydive as the ‘scariest and most peaceful’ thing he’s ever done.
Stephen, who loves open water swimming, took on a 5 ¾ hour swim across Lake Windemere in 2014 and then in 2023 he did the 24 peaks in 48 hours in the Lake District. Walking 12 hours a day he remembers forging through lightning storms and bunking in youth hostel dormitories with complete strangers.
This year, Stephen is upping his already impressive levels of commitment to the cause to celebrate our 40th anniversary. He will be joining us on our inaugural Lantern Walk to remember Kate and honour Charlie’s life, and he will also take on ‘Snowdonia at Sunrise’ in June.
Two weeks after that he will do the Cotswold Way Ultra Challenge – a 100k non-stop challenge that Stephen hopes to complete in 24 hours. If that wasn’t enough, he will also take on the Menai Straight Swim, a 6.5km challenge through some of the most challenging tidal currents in the world!
No plans of slowing down
Stephen has no plans for slowing down or easing up on asking his amazing support network to donate to Meningitis Now. He sees first-hand, in his role of Trustee, the impact that our work has and how donations make it all possible. Charlie’s ongoing bravery in the face of challenges, and the memory of Kate, are all the reason Stephen needs to keep going.
The support Stephen receives from our fundraising team is also a motivation: “When I’m cold, wet and tired the genuine support from the Meningitis Now team is another important aspect of my inspiration.”
We want to take the opportunity to say an enormous thank you to Stephen for his many years of dedicated fundraising and his invaluable contributions in his role as Trustee.
