Peter Keeble, along with daughter Francesca, her boyfriend Daniel and uncle Andrew are preparing to take on a gruelling 1,500 miles from Roscoff in northern France to Nerja in southern Spain in memory of Peter and wife Margaret’s son, Patrick, who suddenly died aged 26.

They hope to raise £15,000 to sponsor a dog in honour of Patrick’s memory who was a great lover of dogs, as well as people.

The family is no stranger to fundraising for us, as they have already sponsored canine partner Lester who has transformed Michelle Cole’s life by providing her with greater independence, confidence and a sense of security.

The challenge will begin on Saturday 13 May, with the route taking them through stunning countryside and coastlines, as well as not one but two mountain ranges – climbing an impressive 32,000 feet!

They will pedal around 100 miles a day across 15 days which will see them pedal to Nantes, France, then along the Atlantic coast to the Spanish border before crossing the Pyrenees Mountains.

After that they will travel across Spain, over the Sierra Nevada mountain range towards Malaga and their final destination of Nerja where Peter’s friend David Lindley will host a well-deserved welcome party at his home.

Patrick’s mum Margaret, who helped to organise the trip, will be accompanying and encouraging the group by following in a support vehicle.

During the challenge, they will also be celebrating two birthdays – as Andrew turns 54 and Daniel hits the 30 milestone. We hope they have time for some cake!

Peter, a retired sales director said: “We wanted to do something big in Patrick’s memory and as he used to do a lot of cycling himself, we thought that would be a great challenge. It’s also a way for us to spend time thinking about him together and take another step towards our healing.

“We chose to raise money for Canine Partners because Patrick loved people and dogs – especially his big Cane Corso, Ducco, who is still part of the family.

“As the charity trains dogs that support people it was the perfect cause so after he died we decided to sponsor Lester, who supports Michelle, a woman who is about Patrick’s age and has MS.

“Now we’re hoping to sponsor another dog like Lester so that we can help change somebody else’s life and keep Patrick’s memory alive.

“All of our friends are surprised we’re going to cycle so far. The most the four of us have every cycled at one time is about three days – when we took part in a London to Paris trip, so we’re going straight into the unknown. We’re looking forward to it.

“The first few legs hopefully won’t be too bad a journey because they’re mostly across flats, but then we have to cross the Pyrenees Mountains and then the Sierra Nevada.”

So far, the family have raised an amazing £6,801 but they are hoping to raise even more to reach their £15,000 target.

To read more about their story, and help the Keeble family with their fundraising challenge to sponsor an amazing assistance dog, please visit their JustGiving page justgiving.com/teams/teampatrick. 

Dancing their way to raising a fantastic £800, Loughborough’s Inner Wheel held a Zumbathon to help transform more lives.

On March 11, Loughborough’s Inner Wheel group and Canine Partners took over the foyer of Loughborough Leisure Centre with a colourful display and raffle, drawing people in to throw some shapes in order to raise much needed funds.

Around 40 participants danced nonstop for an hour and a half, led by instructor Karen Hix who kindly gave her time free of charge to support the event. Zumba involves dance and aerobic movements performed to energetic Latin music. Everyone taking part showed boundless energy throughout, and once the time was up, all agreed that it was a great workout for a great cause!

In addition to dancing the afternoon away, several local businesses supported the event by donating raffle prizes. These included cinema ticket vouchers, meals, Leisure Centre activities, Easter eggs and much more.

The event was supported by the Leisure Centre staff who provided the studio free of charge, and along with the local Rotary Club helped to set up and run the raffle.

To oversee the event, and to add a waggy tail to the proceedings, canine partner Chico attended with his human partner Jane and her husband Mike.

Helen Wilson from the Loughborough Inner Wheel group said:

“Chico the dog, of course, was the star of the show, and knew it! He gave everyone who came within range a show of affection.”

On choosing to support Canine Partners, Helen added:

“I first encountered Canine Partners when they gave a presentation at a Rotary Conference. I was impressed by just how much a dog can change the life of a disabled person, not only by physically helping, but the psychological support of companionship, security, confidence to go out, and enabling communication and the start of friendships.

I was also struck by how happy the dogs were in their work – all tasks were completed with a wag of the tail.

I have since been to a Canine Partners Information Session at the Midlands Centre and was moved to tears by the stories of the people whose lives had been turned around by having a canine partner.

I do believe this is such a worthwhile charity and that their strapline that they ‘transform lives’ is true.”

Everyone at Canine Partners extends a huge congratulations and thank you to everyone who took part in the event.

Would you like to organise your own fundraising activity?

We are always in awe of the amazing work that our fundraisers do to raise awareness and funds for Canine Partners. If you would like to arrange your own fundraising activity, visit our Organise A Fundraising Activity page for some inspiration now.

As Bernadette Walsh would soon be approaching 60 years old, she wanted to take on a project to suit the momentous occasion – so what better than to take on the 282 Munros of Scotland!

This ambitious project is taking place across 10 years, ticking off all 282 peaks by the time Bernadette turns 70. But she isn’t alone on her mission, as trusty pet dog Border Collie Ben is by her side every step of the way.

Now, at 61, Bernadette has already completed 22 of the Munros – and whilst there’s still quite the way to go, it’s a fantastic start to the great adventure ahead.

So why choose Canine Partners as a beneficiary of her fundraising? Having worked in social care for over 40 years, Bernadette knew of the amazing part that assistance dogs play in improving the lives of people with disabilities. She said:

“The partner of a close colleague had applied for a Canine Partner to help her deal with some of the practical difficulties her MS caused and, of course, to be her constant companion. Through this association, I learned about the roller-coaster of emotions that go hand in hand with the process of: applying, matching and training, and the result of a successful partnership.”

Her fundraising efforts will be split between Canine Partners and Search & Rescue Dogs, another charity close to her heart. She is aiming to raise £20,000 for us to fund a partnership from puppy selection right through to matching and aftercare.

But what does Border Collie Ben make of his owner’s challenge? 

“Hello everyone, my name is Ben and I am the paws part of this project. My mission is to raise lots of dosh for Canine Partners because I am in love with Bumble, who is Sandra’s canine partner. I am so full of admiration for the work she does: all that fetching, carrying and opening of doors to assist Sandra who, with Bumble at her side, can achieve all manner of things. Of course there was also the opening of a door in Sandra’s heart, which Bumble walked right into and shut behind her, making them a perfect partnership. Bumble is so clever and so calm and Sandra’s life is a whole lot better because of her.

Of course, being a Border Collie, I’m big in the brains department but, in all honesty, I can’t put my paws up to being very calm. So I’m going to do my bit, to try and get someone else a Bumble, by climbing the Munros with my person, B. I’m v. v. v good at walking. I’m also turning my hand to a bit of writing, to help with the fundraising. This is a new talent which – even if I say so myself – is coming alone quite nicely. You can see what I mean if you visit my blog.

To help me and B complete our goal, without spending too much money, I have got my very own van, our Munromobile; it’s an old VW Caddy. This gets us to our walks and we can crash out in it for the night, after a long day on the hills. Admittedly, it isn’t much of a match for the soft furnishings at home, but it does the job.

Sometimes my van doesn’t work very well which all adds to the adventure, though I must admit I wasn’t keen on being stuck in the middle of nowhere when my van went on strike; the whole sorry saga is detailed in my blog. Please do pay it a visit and leave me the odd comment or two. Let’s face it, a young fellow like me, saddled with an elderly creaking thing, is going to need a lot of background support to keep hauling her up the mountains.

If you are inspired by my big adventure, and have a few pennies to spare, you could spend them in my doggy bag fund here: https://www.justgiving.com/teams/muckybootsandflawlesspaws

As you will see, we are also raising money for search and rescue dogs. These are also amazing dogs who save lives and, lets face it, it’s a very good insurance policy because I might need to call on their help if my person gets us stuck!

Thank you for reading our story,

Love Ben x ?”

Follow Bernadette and Ben’s progress on their Facebook group, and donate here: https://www.justgiving.com/teams/muckybootsandflawlesspaws

Would you like to take on a challenge for Canine Partners?

Find out more about our fundraising opportunities here.