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When Gemma and Gary got married, they decided that as they already had a lot to be happy about, and really wanted to contribute to a cause that was close to both their hearts, they chose to include The Christie hospital as a part of their special day. The Christie had played a significant part in their life as in 2014 after feeling unwell for some time and at just 31 years of age Gemma was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a disease where cancer cells form in the lymph system.
Gemma received extensive treatment at The Christie in February 2014 and in July of that year was told the treatment had been a complete success and she was given the ‘all clear’. Since the successful treatment Gemma and Gary have gone on to have a daughter, Mia, and on planning their upcoming marriage, they decided they really wanted to give something back to the people who had helped them.
Gemma said “The Christie hospital and its staff basically changed all our lives. Their skill, commitment and dedication meant that people like us can move on and live a full and active life and neither of us will ever forget that. So, Gary and I felt that with already being settled in our own house we didn’t really need any more toasters, microwaves or pillowcases for gifts, and so we decided that instead of making a list of wedding presents, we would ask our guests to celebrate our special day with a donation to The Christie Charity. After all, if it wasn’t for The Christie, it’s likely we wouldn’t be getting married or have a daughter to share our lives with.
“We set up a JustGiving page with a couple of pictures and a short story about our association with The Christie and why we had decided to follow this route. Setting this page up was really quite easy to do, and in the weeks leading up to our marriage we were delighted to see the donations begin to steadily increase along with some lovely personal messages.
“We had a wonderful wedding and so many people commented on what a lovely gesture it was to replace presents with donations and so we knew instinctively we’d made the right decision. As well as contributing to our JustGiving page, on the day of our wedding our guests brought cash and cheque donations, and a few weeks later when we had the chance to total everything up, we were delighted to be able to donate over £3,500 to our chosen charity.
