Nephew’s £2,000 Ironman cancer fundraiser for ward
Date of release: 12 July 2024
A former footballing prodigy has raised £2,000 to support Wolverhampton cancer patients in their recovery by completing a gruelling endurance event.
Joe Hartshorne crossing the finish line
Joe Hartshorne, 25, tackled the Ironman 70.3 Bolton – a 1.9km swim, a 90km bike ride and a half marathon (13.1-mile) run.
The ex-England schoolboy international from Cannock crossed the finish line in seven and a half hours, including transitions.
Joe has so far raised £2,070 for Ward C35 Acute Chemotherapy at New Cross Hospital – part of The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust (RWT) – where his aunt, Lorraine Haynes, is a patient.
Lorraine, 57, from Heath Hayes – known as Ray by her family – was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) in January 2024 and has had three stints of chemotherapy, spending a month at a time on the ward.
Joe wants to improve the balcony/courtyard area off the ward where patients relax and exercise between their treatments.
“Aunty Ray does about 70 laps a day of the garden area and the staff do so much for the patients – they are fantastic,” said Joe, who was on the books of Wolves, West Bromwich Albion and Walsall as a youngster.
“But the patients can’t leave the area because of the infection risk and it could do with improving, so it would be good to pay for some nicer garden furniture and some plants.”
Joe, who works as a bathroom salesman, achieved splits of 43 minutes, 35 seconds for the swim, 3.57 for the cycling and 2.33 for the run to place 1,362nd out of 1,435 finishers after 1,900 started.
Joe Hartshorne with his medal celebrating with his family
“It was the best day of my life and there were quite a few tears at the end,” said Joe.
“With 10k to go, all my family were there and I was really struggling, but I tried to show them I wasn’t tearful knowing there was one more loop.
“Aunty Ray had been tracking me on the Ironman app and she shed a tear.”
Helped by girlfriend Amy Bergara, 25, Joe trained by swimming, cycling and running three or four times a week of distances of around 1.5km, 45km and 10km respectively.
“Amy convinced me to start running with her, so I thank her for her support,” added Joe. “March was the first time I’d been on a road bike.”
Lorraine said: “I’m very proud of Joe. While receiving chemo I spent a lot of time in the garden area. The fresh air helped me remain positive.
“I’m sure the new furniture will help patients and their visitors enjoy the area as much as I did.”
Kayleigh Morgan, Guest Acting Ward Manager for C35 Chemotherapy Ward, said: “Joe’s fundraising is fantastic. All the staff are very grateful for his hard work.
“Lots of our patients have extended stays, so they’ll all appreciate the garden being revamped. Thank you for your efforts.”
Amanda Winwood, RWT Charity Development Manager, said: “Joe took on an amazing challenge. His fundraising will really help brighten up the garden.”
People can still donate to Joe’s fundraiser at JustGiving - Joseph Hartshorne
ENDS
- For further information, please call Tim Nash on 07714 741097 or email tim.nash2@nhs.net
