Fun Walk: a really fantastic family event!
For mum, Caroline, and her daughter, Sophie, St Christopher’s Fun Walk really is a family affair. And, for the pair who’ve attended every Fun Walk since 2019, along with numerous relatives, the 2025 Fun Walk took on an extra significance and poignancy as it came just six months after Sophie’s dad, Bryan, died at the hospice.
For 16-year-old Sophie, who wasn’t able to complete the walk because of her asthma, the day still more than lived up to its name because she won the giant bear whose name participants had to guess – Fun Bear.
“It really is a fantastic family event. There’s something for everyone to do, it’s a great charity and even if you don’t raise a tonne of money it’s a fun family day to remember loved ones.”
“It was extra special for us this year because Bryan died last November. It was a beautiful day and there were thousands of people there.”
Bryan, who ran a printing business and was an avid Crystal Palace fan, was diagnosed with cancer in September 2024. He spent a month in hospital and was then admitted to St Christopher’s for palliative care.
“The care and the staff at St Christopher’s were absolutely fantastic – so kind and caring and they really took Sophie’s feelings into consideration,” Caroline adds.
Sophie has returned to St Christopher’s for bereavement counselling with the hospice’s Candle project.
She says: “It’s been very good as it’s helped me to talk about my feelings and understand that it’s OK to talk about Dad, and now Mum and I talk about him a lot.”
While Caroline and the family were walking the course, Sophie was busy on the many stalls – particularly naming the bear. Her hard work paid off when Fun Bear, her hunch, was announced as its name.
While Sophie was delighted to add to her collection of hundreds of bears, Caroline wasn’t sure how they’d get the six-foot brown bundle of fun back to their Swanscombe home on public transport.
Caroline was joined by her parents, siblings and their partners, nephews and nieces on the 8-mile walk and the large family group not only raised more than £500 for St Christopher’s but also thoroughly enjoyed the day.
“We try and make it a fun time to get together, have a laugh and a joke and not make it too sad as we remember people along the way. We’ve also lost friends, neighbours and aunties and uncles over the years. Every year it feels like we add a new name to the T-shirt to remember. This year it was Bryan.”
“The driver was threatening to charge him for a seat!”
Back home, Fun Bear now sleeps on the top bunk above Sophie and, with his connection to her Dad, shares a special place in her heart along with Bear, who Bryan gave her when she was just three.
Asked if they’ll be back in Keston for Fun Walk 2026, Caroline and Sophie both said, “absolutely.”
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