My Story

Hi 👋 I'm Tom — a public relations practitioner for the last 10 years, a long-suffering Derby County fan, and a published author.

I'm also a husband and a father. And it’s for the latter that I’m raising money.

You see, my little boy, Lewie, arrived six weeks premature. Clearly deciding he’d had enough, he made a dramatic entrance — kicking my wife’s bowel in the process and forcing an early intervention.

And so, on 19th March 2022, Lewie arrived via what was possibly the most chilled-out C-section delivery ever. But he was tiny and fragile. Just 4.7 pounds in weight.

Wrapped up in the smallest beanie hat I’ve ever seen, he was whisked away to the NICU and placed on a ventilator.

Lewie spent six weeks in NICU — the full length of what should have been the remainder of his term. Those were some of the hardest weeks of mine and my wife's lives. The endless back-and-forth to the hospital. The helplessness of seeing little progress. Watching him from a distance, unable to hold him. Gently placing him back when he forgot to breathe. Hoping, waiting, willing him to take milk.

The hardest part? Knowing there was nothing we could do to help him. We could only be there.

But the nurses — those incredible nurses — were everything. They guided us through every moment, cared for Lewie as if he were their own, and gave us the strength to keep going.

I’ll never forget it. We’ll never forget it.

I'm not going to pretend it's the reason I'm running the Great North Run 2025 — my first-ever half marathon. Far from it. I got roped into that. But I am going to use this opportunity to raise money for the Neonatal Unit that gave Lewie the best possible start.

Every donation will go towards vital equipment, consumables, and even seasonal gifts that make life in the unit just a little bit more comforting for families like ours.

Becoming a new parent is hard. Becoming a new parent and watching from the sidelines as nurses build your child up just to be able to go home is even harder. But thanks to those nurses, Lewie did go home. And now, with your help, I want to give something back.

If you’ve made it this far — thank you ❤️ Every donation and kind comment will be gratefully received.