Parents join charity cycle for Simpsons
Parents Paul and Meghan Godsman are to join the charity cycle challenge, bp Coast to Coast, to raise funds for the charity which helped them after their baby's early arrival.
Blake Godsman was born in May 2024 nine weeks early and was admitted to the Simpson Neonatal Unit at Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. He was cared for there for nine weeks until he was allowed to go home with his parents. During his stay Paul and Meghan could stay over allowing them to be close to Blake while he was quite ill. This made a huge difference to them.
Paul said: 'As much as the neonatal unit is there to care for the babies, there is a huge support need for parents who are navigating this terrifying experience.
'We were so grateful to stay in one of two parent rooms on the neonatal ward for the first four weeks of Blake's life when we really needed it. It meant we could wake up and walk along the corridor to be beside him. If we'd been driving home to Linlithgow every night, we'd have been an hour away from the hospital should anything happen. That would have put an even bigger strain on us.
'Our goal is to raise money to help the unit improve its support for parents, refurbish family rooms and facilities and buy specialist equipment.
'I was also extremely grateful to my employer bp, which allowed me to have extended leave so I could be with my wife and son while he was being cared for in hospital.'
The Neonatal Unit is supported by Simpsons Special Care Babies (SSCB), a charity that exists to enhance the support and advice provided by the NHS to families of babies admitted to the unit from across the country.
Paul has completed the cycle before but Meghan will be undertaking the challenge for the first time. He said: 'Although I've completed Coast 2 Coast a couple of times prior and seen the incredible amounts of money raised for charity, I've never had that personal connection with the charity before but this year I'll be cycling in a totally different headspace.'
Meghan added: 'When I first went into labour, Paul was with two members of the bp Coast 2 Coast committee cycling in Inverness so it seems fitting that we will now cycle together with Paul's colleagues to help raise funds for the charity that saved Blake's life. We were naive to the reality of what it felt like to have a baby in the neonatal unit and we were shocked to learn how common this is for families.
'Before Blake was born, we hadn't realised there are only three centres of excellence in Scotland for babies requiring complex specialist care and people from across the country must travel to come to these centres in Edinburgh, Glasgow or Aberdeen.
'Now that Blake is out of hospital and doing well, we want to support the charity that gave him life and make sure other parents who find themselves in a similar position can receive the same support we did and go on to experience parenthood like we are now.'
Emma Coffey, trustee at Simpsons Special Care Babies, said: 'We can't thank Paul and Meghan and the Coast 2 Coast team enough for selecting SSCB as one of the charities to benefit from this year's fundraising. It's thanks to supporters like them that our specialised staff can continue to provide care for the 750 families who attend the neonatal unit each year.
'Voluntary donations and fundraising are crucial for SSCB and this donation will help us purchase new specialist equipment such as the latest video laryngoscopes, which allow our staff to better visualise the airways of extremely small babies when inserting breathing tubes. This improves time, comfort and safety and ultimately helps save lives.
'We wish all the riders the best of luck and look forward to hearing how they get on.'
The cycling challenge is 234 miles through Grantown-on-Spey, the Lecht and Aberfeldy over three days from 6 June 2025. Since it was established 16 years ago it has raised more than £2 million for charity. It is open to cyclists of all abilities with everyone covering their own expenses. Each cyclist must raise at least £1,000 and the fundraising is split between four charities: Russell Anderson Foundation, the Teddy Bear Development Playgroup and Murtle Market by Camphill School, as well as Simpsons Special Care Babies.
To sponsor one of the four Coast 2 Coast charities, you can select your preferred charity by clicking the link below.
Russell Anderson Foundation
Murtle Market by Camphill Schools
Simpsons Special Care Babies
The Teddy Bear Development Playgroup
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