Transplant survivor, Blake Thomas, uses his pedal power to raise much needed funds for UHB Charity!

Meet Blake
In 2020 Blake Thomas felt gravely ill and after many doctor appointments he was blue lighted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital where he was told he’d have to have a heart transplant. Unfortunately his body rejected it in 2021.He was treated again by the wonderful staff at the hospital and 10 weeks later he was finally able to go home. It took him a long while to recover and he even had to learn to walk again.

Fast forward to this summer and Blake managed to get on his bike for what’s become an annual event to raise much needed funds for UHB Charity to whom the family say they owe everything to.

Blake said: “I can’t put into words how thankful I am to the staff that cared for me, they were all fantastic and helped put me at ease when I was at my lowest point. This is my way of giving back to the hospital that saved my life.”

Using their Pedal Power
In 2020, Blake, his dad Mick and their friend Bryan took on a 90 mile cycle for UHB Charity, made all the more incredible that earlier that year Blake received the life saving gift of a heart transplant. Two years on, Blake is back on his bike fundraising again by cycling “from Alfreton to Skegness to raise money for the hospital that has always been there for me.”

This summer Blake and his dad Mick were joined by five other cyclists to complete the gruelling 90 mile bike ride from Alfreton to Skegness. The amazing riders and supporters had to get up super early to start the ride at 5am. They had some well deserved stops along the way until they finally reached the centre of Skegness, ending at the clock tower.

The amazing riders this year were:
• Mick Thomas
• Blake Thomas
• Bryan Hyslop
• Sharon Gloss
• Wayne Strouther
• Dermot
• Lisa

A special shout out also to Michael Harrison who gave up his weekend to be the support driver for all the riders, carry out any repairs on the bikes and transported the bikes home the following day after the ride. A great team effort!

So far they have raised more than £1,700 for UHB Charity and you can still show your support for their ride by clicking here.

UHB Charity is proud to support the incredible work of the transplantation team at QEHB, and with Blake’s help, the new Transplant Centre can continue to fund research into heart transplants, as well as providing state of the art equipment, over and above that which the NHS is able to provide.

If you would like to have a go at fundraising yourself or with a team for UHB Charity, click here.

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University Hospitals Birmingham Charity is a company limited by guarantee in England (No.10004003) and a charity registered in England and Wales (No.1165716).Registered Office: Fisher House, Mindelsohn Way, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, B15 2GN

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