ST. CATHERINE’S LADIES MOONLIGHT WALK
In October it seemed like a brilliant idea. In
March we began to wonder. By May we had concluded that we must be all mad!!
Twenty ladies from Fulwood, of varying ages, decided they would take part in the Moonlight Sponsored Walk on 2 June in aid of St Catherine’s Hospice. When we first registered in October it seemed such a long way away that we thought nothing more about it. By the early spring we had decided that perhaps we should begin to do a little training if we were to complete the 13 mile walk. Janet Lowes and I began by doing a couple of short routes around the pavements of Fulwood and Ingol. Dog walking routes of the past were favourites to give us a bit of variety of scenery. It’s amazing the number of paths one can find when the mind is focused. We gradually built up by doing longer walks round Barton, Broughton and Woodplumpton and finally just a couple of weeks before the big day we were dropped off in Garstang and walked the length of the Lancaster canal down to Haslam Park – a total of 13 miles exactly. Having completed that without too many aches and pains we were confident that we could manage the "real thing"!
We had been issued with sponsor forms and details of training regimes but there still seemed to be some mystery about the route which would be taken. However we were assured that all would be revealed on the night.
Despite the "non-summer" we have experienced this year, the evening of the 2 June was perfect for walking. We met at church and Ray Armstrong kindly volunteered to take us down to the Carrefour Gym on the docks to meet with the other 1600 ladies who were going to take part. We were issued with the route, a luminous wrist band and an emergency telephone number. Once registered there was nothing to do but wait for the stroke of midnight. Local radio was there and the army had been drafted in to provide hot drinks and refreshments as well as a cooked breakfast on our return. They were also going to provide an escort for us on route. There was quite a mêlée with all those females and as the stroke of midnight grew nearer the queues for the portaloos grew longer!!
At the appointed hour we were released in batches of about 200 with a group of pace walkers at the head of each group. We walked round the dockland area and back to the gym. That all seemed easy enough. We then went onto Strand Road and onto Fishergate Hill travelling towards town. For some reason we had managed to get into to last group to leave so by the time we were going up the hill the lead groups were coming down and well on their way to Penwortham! Our group had become split as people walked at their own pace but Janet and I stayed together along with three or four other friends.
The circuit of the town centre at 12.30am on a Sunday morning was an experience in itself. Many Saturday night revellers were out and about and could not believe their eyes when they saw 1600 women of all shapes and sizes coming towards them in bright pink T-shirts. I think some thought they were seeing pink elephants!! For me it seemed a great way to make contact with a group of people the Christian community would not often reach. They asked us who we were, what we were doing and why? Simple questions, simple answers and if they remembered nothing more about their drunken night out in Preston they may well remember the name of St Catherine’s and that so many women were prepared to walk 13 miles to help raise money. We even had some donations from them too. Stewards and soldiers did a great job in their protection of us all and were at all the road junctions and street corners to make sure there was no trouble. However I don’t think there was one bad incident during the whole time.
Off down Fishergate Hill and over Penwortham Bridge and into Penwortham to Cop Lane where there was an official refreshment stop – water to drink and portaloos. The queues were so long that some of the Fulwood ladies lost about 20 minutes waiting! We decided to move on. Once travelling through the residential areas the group became more strung out and quieter – we did not want to wake people with our chatter and the pace slowed for some as they found they had blisters or other problems.
Through the country lanes, the night was very dark but the stewards made sure we took the right turnings, and on to Lostock Hall where we had a longer stop for drinks, toilets and bananas! The bananas had been provided free by one of the sponsors of the walk. Quietly through the grounds of St Catherine’s Hospice itself and out onto the open road towards Preston once more. I think that was about the two thirds mark and we were all beginning to feel a little tired by now but the pace was continuing and we could feel the end in sight.
Dawn was beginning to break as we walked through lower Penwortham and the birds were singing to greet us. Back on Penwortham bridge and a car full of revellers on their way home stopped to ask us what we were doing. As we rounded into Strand Road some of the early starters were to be seen driving home – we still had the last few hundred yards to go. Finally we reached the gym car park once more having completed the whole 13 miles in five and a quarter hours. The army served up the best bacon and egg butty I have tasted in years and a welcome rest before Ray arrived to ferry us back to church and the call of a comfy bed and a few hours sleep!! Some of us even managed to get to church some five hours later for the service – including Sister Myrtle who had to preach!
Over £200,000 was pledged by the ladies on the night of the race and if our sponsor forms were anything to go by the total will be much higher as people decided to give more. It was a great occasion and one which will be repeated next year – although I am not sure that I will be on the start line. It was a great opportunity to meet other like minded people. Walking through the town centre was an experience not to be missed as we were able to give witness, to those who have never heard, that there is compassion in the world and people can do things other than for themselves. The story of Jesus in a practical way.
Margaret Squire