Welshgrandad's fundraising journey from Suffolk to Wales

In May 2024, John was in a serious accident, which ultimately led to him being diagnosed with bladder cancer.

“I fell off a ladder onto a brick patio and lost consciousness. I was taken to the emergency department at a hospital in Colchester as my injuries were serious.

“While in hospital recovering from my accident, it was discovered that I had complications with my prostate,” says John. “I had an operation and doctors discovered that I had bladder cancer.”

Further tests revealed that John had cancer in his right kidney, and there were markers found in his blood.

“The first thing I could think of was, ‘How long have I got?’ And what have I got to do to make sure everything is fine for my wife if anything happens to me?’"

John, who goes by WelshGranded on social media, shared his story on TikTok. What started as a simple video following a suggestion from his granddaughter led to John gaining over 30,000 followers.

“After telling people my story, many people resonated with it. I wanted to support all those with cancer. I felt like what I was doing wasn’t enough and was determined to find a way of doing more.

“So, I decided that I wanted to help raise funds to support various charities.”

That’s when John made the decision to walk more than 500 miles from Lowestoft, Suffolk to St Davids, Wales, all while having ongoing cancer treatment.

“Many people do a coast-to-coast path in Cumbria, but I wanted to do something different,” says John. “I chose this route because it is the most easternly part of England to the most westerly part of Wales.”

From unusually hot weather to blocked walkways and styles, John faced some challenges during his walk. However, he didn't let these setbacks stop him.

“You have to take it one day at a time,” says John. “When it’s 30˚C degrees and you see a long row ahead of you and you’ve already done 10 to 15 miles of walking – all you can do is put one foot in front of the other.”

Using his social media platform, John invited others to join him on his walk.

“I don’t mind walking on my own, but it was much nicer walking with others,” says John. “Those who joined me were incredibly supportive. Their friendship, support and companionship has been outstanding.”

Originally aiming to is raise £20,000, John raised more than £80,000 during this challenge. The fundraising will be equally split between 4 charities who have supported him and his family:

• Macmillan Cancer Support
• Cancer Research UK
• Farleigh Hospice Essex
• St Davids Hospice Care.

"I was very emotional during the last stretch of my challenge," says John. "I had a lot of family and friends walking with me on the final day, so I didn't really have much time to reflect, that came later.

"I had a lot of people waiting for me at the end. It was fantastic to have so much support, including representatives from all four charities.

"There is still so much more to do and so many more people to help. There is more to come so watch this space."

Following along John’s journey on TikTok and Instagram.