At The Brain Tumour Charity, our fantastic fundraisers never fail to amaze us with their dedication and commitment to the cause. And our junior fundraisers are no exception!
Meet Arthur, Olivia, Noah, Ravi and Harry who have all made a big impact with their fundraising this year.
Arthur’s Everest Climb
Arthur Middleton, 10, has spent years of his life battling recurring brain tumours, and had to learn to walk again after his first surgery in 2017, and again after his second in 2018.
A clinical trial in America kept the tumour at bay for two years, although it started to grow back when the trial ended, and he had to come off the medication. Fortunately, Arthur, now based in Lincolnshire, has been able to access the medication in the UK, and remains stable.
Despite being left with weakness on his left side, Arthur set himself a mammoth challenge this year – to conquer enough British peaks to equal the height of Mount Everest – an astonishing 8,849 metres.
“Arthur is fierce and determined and a force to be reckoned with,” says his proud mum, Claire. “He’s happy, loves school and his friends and never gives up. He has shown us the way through this journey. He’s taught us so much about how to approach life.
“He inspires us every single day and what’s so amazing about this charity challenge is he’s so proud of himself. The goal is to raise awareness of brain tumours and funds for research to discover new medicines.
“Watching his sense of pride in what he’s doing is amazing. It’s all I wanted for him. He has such a zest for life, it’s so inspiring.”
Arthur scaled peaks all over the UK for his challenge, including Snowdon, Ben Nevis, Scafel Pike and Ingleborough and Whernside in the Yorkshire Dales.
He completed his challenge in November 2024 and completely smashed his fundraising target which includes matched funding by his Dad Henry’s employer Macquarie, bringing the total to £54,080 at the last count!
Claire said: “He is so determined and resilient and I don’t know why we ever questioned whether he would be able to do this. As physically challenging as it is, he just gets on with it and makes us incredibly proud that he wanted to do it. He makes us proud with every step of his life.”
Olivia’s Walk for her mum
Olivia, from Poole, did a sponsored walk on the one year anniversary of losing her mum, Louise, to a brain tumour – and raised a remarkable £1,591.
Olivia, 9, completed her walk in August and was supported by friends and family on a very emotional day. Olivia’s dad Dan, sisters Phoebe and Esmee and her brother Zakary were all there to cheer her on. Olivia was excited and a little surprised to have raised so much for the Charity.
In December, Community Fundraiser Firzana Khan visited Olivia’s school, Heatherlands Primary School in Poole, to do a cheque presentation in celebration of Olivia’s amazing achievement.
Noah’s “4 IN 4” for Callum
Callum was one of 10 year old Noah’s best friends.
They went to the same school in Woking and while Noah played football whenever he could while Callum enjoyed activities like gymnastics, they were good mates who shared a love for Pokemon and Mario Kart.
But Callum, nine, had developed a Diffuse Midline Glioma and despite the best efforts of his family and the medical professionals involved in his care, he sadly passed away on 11 March 2023.
Noah was determined to do something positive to counteract the sadness and he came up with the idea of hiking up four peaks in four months – Noah’s 4 in 4 2024 Challenge – in aid of The Brain Tumour Charity and The Shooting Star Children’s hospice in Guildford, where Callum spent his last day. He set out to summit Scafell Pike, Ben Nevis, and Snowdon by July – finishing off with Brocken, North Germany, in August (where his mum is from).
Noah said: “The reason I have chosen the mountains is because hiking them will be long, hard, and tiring but also fun and a good challenge for me to overcome. Another reason is that I hope I will feel proud when I reach the summit, and I hope that my achievement will make Callum happy.
“My friendship with Callum was a great one and he taught me a lot about Maths. The kid was a human calculator! When we were doing Year 3 target ‘Your maths’ he was doing Year 5! Whenever I was struggling in maths, I could always look to him for help and this challenge is my way of thanking him for all the stuff he taught me.”
A huge well done to Noah for his efforts! He not only completed all the climbs, he smashed his fundraising target as well, raising an incredible £2623 for each charity.
RAVI’S Dream Choir lit up BRITAIN’S GOT TALENT
In the spring, Ravi Adelkan and his Dream Team choir melted hearts on the way to receiving a Golden Buzzer for their performance of A Million Dreams.
Watch Ravi’s Dream Team Choir
Ravi’s choir’s performance on Britain’s Got Talent was moving and powerful, earning them a Golden Buzzer. Experience this special moment here.
Ravi’s Dream Team Choir is made up of children affected by brain tumours – and their parents, friends, teachers, medical professionals and supporters of the brain tumour charities. The choir includes our very own Claire Howell, Community Fundraiser for the South and South East, who has supported Ravi and his family since he kicked off his fundraising in 2022, and who shared her account of taking part in the choir here.
The Dream Team Choir delivered another wonderful performance in the live semi finals, and though they didn’t make the final, they gained very many supporters during their run on the programme, raising a huge amount of awareness along the way.
In October, Ravi collected a British Citizen Youth Award at the House Of Lords, in recognition of his fundraising heroics in support of the brain tumour community. He bumped into fellow junior fundraiser Harry Smith at the ceremony, who was also honoured with an award!
Anyone who knows Ravi knows he doesn’t stand still for long. He and the choir have continued to perform at exciting events this year. Keep your eyes peeled for an ITV Meridian Christmas special in the coming weeks! And follow Ravi on his social media to find out what he’s getting up to next!
Harry’s marathon swim for Emily
Harry was too young to do the London Marathon with his parents. So he swam a marathon distance instead!
Harry Smith, 12, from St Albans, lost his younger sister, Emily, to a brain tumour in 2022.
Emily was diagnosed with a diffuse midline glioma – one of the most common types of brain tumour in children – in July 2022, when she was eight years old.
Her diagnosis came after feeling ‘unusual’ and having weakness on her right side just a few days before. Emily was referred to hospital where she had an MRI which revealed the tumour in her brain. Tragically, she died just 11 days later.
Since losing Emily, her family have raised over £50,000 for Emily’s Fund, within The Brain Tumour Charity. Harry took on a series of tough physical challenges, from climbing Scafel Pike, to cycling the 75km from Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge to his home in St. Albans – the journey home his sister was not able to make. And last summer, the whole family completed a 192km coast to coast challenge across the UK, for Tom’s Trust.
In 2023, Harry was crowned Just Giving’s Young Fundraiser of the Year in recognition of his efforts. But he wasn’t going to let 2024 go by without more hard work! In April, his mum and dad, Andy and Sarah, ran the London marathon in Emily’s memory. And Harry took on his own marathon challenge, by swimming a marathon distance in April, one mile at a time.
In October, Harry was awarded a British Citizen Youth Award at the House of Lords – where he caught up with Ravi!
The British Citizen Youth Award is held annually, honouring outstanding under 18’s who have made a difference within their communities and society.
Take part in a charity challenge!
If you’re inspired by everyone’s efforts, you’ll be excited to hear that you can take part in your own charity challenge. Our Community Fundraising team will be happy to support! Tell us your plans!