Six friends from Worthing walk in nurses’ shoes

Six women from Worthing have signed up for Nurses’ Steps, fundraising for local hospice St Barnabas House by walking 7,000 steps a day throughout February. The number is the average distance covered by a nurse at the hospice in the course of their daily duties.

Jodie, Holly, Kim, Michelle, Natalie and Shelley aim to raise £465 by walking together in the evenings. Four of them have experienced the hospice’s loving care first-hand: “My dad went into St Barnabas House to begin his end-of-life journey in August 2012,” says Shelley.  “Spending four days solid in the hospice at the end of my dad’s life, I saw the amazing work and compassion of the hospice nurses. I want to raise funds to give back to the hospice so they can support others during the most difficult times.” Jodie agrees: “When my mum went into the hospice in 2021, the kind and caring staff blew me away. Nothing was too much trouble for them, and I can’t thank them enough for taking such amazing care of my mum. This is our way of giving back.”

Kim recently had a student placement at St Barnabas and worked closely with the nurses there. “I am looking forward to walking with them again and raising funds for this great local charity,” she says.

The women will be walking together in the evenings – descending to Jodie’s for sessions on the treadmill if it’s raining. “We are a close friendship group and see each other regularly for food, drinks, spa days and book clubs,” says Kim. “We are looking forward to doing Nurses’ Steps together as something different, and to raise funds for a charity close to our hearts.”

“Seven thousand steps a day might not seem like a lot to some people, but we average 3-5,000 a day each so this will be a challenge for us!” says Shelley.  “We will mostly be walking around the Offington/Broadwater area so if you see us out and about, give us a wave – or even better, a donation!”