A TEACHER who went on a cycling fundraiser for two hospitals that saved his life has had his bike stolen.
Hove resident Gareth Power, who teaches at Lewes Sixth Form College, joined friends and colleagues Charlie Bond and Neil Baker in a cycle from the Royal Sussex County Hospital to the Singleton Hospital in Swansea and back again, to raise money for both hospitals after his treatment for bone marrow cancer.
The round trip took nine days to complete, passing through Guilford, Hungerford, Chepstow, Swansea, Pontypridd, Bath, Southampton and on to Brighton.
However, after the trio went to celebrate the completion of their journey at the Bison Beach Bar in Madeira Drive, they soon discovered that Gareth’s bike was gone.
Gareth said: “We chained our bikes up, I think I had two pints, and I came back out and someone had unclipped my bike and away it’s done.
“We went from elation to total deflation.”
He soon shared his story of his missing bike on social media, where he then got a message from a stranger from Swansea, who said his family was also going through their own struggles with cancer, and offered to give Gareth his similar-looking bike.
When Gareth met the stranger, he attempted to give him money for the gift, but he did manage to get him to accept a bottle of wine as a token of his appreciation.
“It left me flabbergasted and I didn’t know what to do.
“I felt it would be rude not to accept and I said I would be delighted to accept your kind offer.”
After being diagnosed in December 2016, Gareth received 13 months of treatment, first at the Royal Sussex County Hospital and then at Singleton Hospital where he transferred to be closer to his family.
He also returned to the Royal Sussex on a regular basis for bone strengthening treatment.
Gareth said he is very grateful for the treatment and support he got from staff at both hospitals, and praised their professionalism.
“They came up trumps - I owe them my life for what they did to me,” he said.
Gareth has raised over £8,000 for the hospitals, way beyond his initial target of £500.
He said: “We raised the first £500 in the first couple of hours. As the journey kept going along, I had to keep raising the target.”
“I’ve never done anything like this before - the whole thing was humbling and overwhelming with the support.”
Those who want to donate to Gareth’s fundraiser can still do so at https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/my-cancer-journey-brighton-to-swansea-and-back.
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