UPDATE Thursday Oct 1st: We’ve now raised over £12,500 for Cancer Research UK & Macmillan Cancer Support
UPDATE Sunday PM: The total raised so far is a little short of £6.5k
UPDATE Wednesday AM: Crowdfunding shares in the original Jo Burt cover painting are now available here. Total raised so far for Cancer Research and Macmillan Cancer Support is approximately £5500
UPDATE Friday 11am: We’ve added sales of Digital Subscriptions and individual issue 100 sales to the donation list. See below for the details.
It’s been a tough 12 months for us all at Singletrack and grit.cx but none of us has had a tougher year than our Deputy Editor Jenn Hill. Jenn has lung cancer, categorised as Stage IV at diagnosis – which is about as bad as it can be. While the rest of us see this as tragic Jenn herself describes it as bad luck. Cancer aside, she’s healthier than the rest of us by a very long way. The fact she has this dreadful disease is baffling to everyone who knows her, but ultimately comes down to just shit luck. It truly is shit.
Jenn has continued to work at Singletrack since her diagnosis last year despite the chemotherapy, drug trials, gamma knife surgery, and more chemo. While living with this awful disease she has written features, reviewed products, been on adventures, sub-edited hundreds of thousands of words of copy, ‘encouraged’ copy from late contributors and staff and essentially got on with it while, as her current email signature states, she ‘kicks the arse out of cancer’.
There is currently no cure for Stage IV cancer and sadly Jenn’s treatment options have now come to an end. She’s leaving Singletrack to spend the last few months of her life with friends and loved ones, supported by St Gemma’s Hospice and the amazing team at St James’s Institute of Oncology, Leeds, to whom she and everyone around her owes a great debt of thanks for their expertise and compassion over the past 18 months.
She is a private person and she will be cringing reading this, but she’s also very open and surprisingly frank about the whole situation. She wouldn’t want anyone to avoid the topic while she’s in their company and it’s been made clear to us all that she’s more than willing to talk about the whole thing. Frankly, she’s amazed us with her determination and courage. It’s a tragedy for sure but a deeply humbling one at the same time.
As part of her treatment Jenn has taken part in a drug trial that had startling, though temporary results. These drug trials are helping cancer sufferers right now and the knowledge they provide to the doctors, nurses and teams of researchers that battle this disease on a daily basis will undoubtedly save lives in the future. That’s why, at Jenn’s request, we have chosen Cancer Research UK and Macmillan Cancer Support as our two nominated charities. For as long as you order them, for every sale of our signed Jo Burt Issue 100 cover prints, Issue 100 mugs and Special Issue 100 T-shirts, we will donate a set amount from each sale to these two charities. Pre-order in our shop now.
- For our Issue 100 Cover prints, signed by Jo Burt, we will donate £20 from the sale of each one.
- For our Issue 100 mugs we will donate £3.50 from the sale of each one
- We will donate £10 from the sale of all print and digital subscriptions sold up until the 18th of October 2015
- We will donate £5 from the sale of all digital subscriptions sold up to the 18th October 2015
- We will donate £2 from the sale of every copy of issue 100 sold via our online shop until they are sold out.
- All amounts raised will be split equally between the two charities.
Shortly we will be announcing the auction of the original Issue 100 Jo Burt painting that we used for our cover. The proceeds of that auction will be split equally between these two charities.
You can also donate directly to both charities via their websites.
Cancer research UK & Macmillan Cancer Support
I have a lot of kit here recommended by Jenn A review by the girl is the law! Thank you! respect, x .
Awwwww shit! I still remember you gently mocking my choice of CK headset colour in Quest many years ago! Loved your articles in the mag too. Absolutely tragic but a life well lived, thoughts with you Jenn.
Thoughts with you Jenn. Keep kicking it.
Aww crap. Thoughts and positive vibes for you Jenn.
Jenn you wrote the best line I’ve ever seen in a cycling article ever. It described the A9 as “the road to fun”. I’ve never forgotten that phrase which evoked a lot for me. As a result I’ve now subscribed again. I wish you well and hope you find many more virtual roads to fun.
Thanks Jenn for writing the words I’ve read with enjoyment. I hope you’ve had a great life up until now and enjoyed what time you’ve had on this earth. I wish you all the best for your remaining days. Shit happens, life’s cruel, more to some than others. That’s just the way it is. All the best.
Hey Jenn, I’ve been scanning the mag every month for an update since you broke the news last year, hoping no news was good news. So sorry to hear the latest. Shit happens to those who least deserve it 🙁 I’m sure you will keep packing in as much as you can for as long as you can. I wish I had half your courage – you are an inspiration!
Devastating. I haven’t met you Jenn but have truly loved your writing style and your humility. I hope you will remember the good times you have had, enjoy more in the future and know that you are a source of inspiration as well as being immensely talented.
Mug ordered!
Laugh and cry in equal measures with your friends and family Jenn.
Nothing more i can add that hasn’t been already said, but i just wanted to say “Thanks Jenn”, your writing and articles have entertained and inspired me, and that’s surely the essence of MTB friends 😉
My thoughts are with you Jenn, also your family and friends/colleagues. I wish you all the best.
Can we add Grit.cx subs to the offer? Mug order will follow shortly regardless. Rubbish news for anyone, whether you know them or not. Very best wishes.
There are no words to say in this situation. Jenn, you are an inspiration. All the best to you as you deal with this.
Can’t imagine what you’re going through but sending much love if it helps any.
John x
OMG so shocked and sorry to hear this. Don’t know what to say but send much love.
Thanks for what you’ve given us Jenn, its been a pleasure
Shit. Shit. Shit. Lost to many friends and family too the big C and I am not exactly what you would classify as old.
Good luck Jenn and happy trails.
Reading how you have been just getting on with living is truly inspiring.
Thanks for all the great inputs and articles over the years.
Truly inspirational.
Love, peace and happiness to you, your family and friends.
Life is melancholy.
I find such peace out on the trails.
I hope you find peace Jenn.
Ride some trails for her folks.
So sorry and sad to read this news, it’s simply not fair, I hope you find some joy where you can in the next few months.