700 letters, 17 countries, 24 hours of kindness
World Cancer Day 24hr Letter Writing Marathon = complete!
Last weekend (7th–8th February) we marked World Cancer Day by coming together for our second 24-Hour Letter Writing Marathon - and what an incredible 24 hours it was.
Writers from 17 countries around the world joined us online, united by one simple but powerful mission: to spread kindness and connection through handwritten letters to people living with cancer. And for the first time, this year we held three in-person Letter Writing workshops to create offline communities to complement our online one.
Our Trustee, Lucy, held two workshops at the glorious setting of RHS Harlow Carr – where attendees came together to use the beautiful surroundings to inspire their letter writing. They dialled in to the online event to be part of it too.
And fellow Trustees, Kareena and Nathan, held an in-person Letter Writing workshop to coincide with the 24hr marathon at IFS Cloud Cable Car in Greenwich, London. Letter writers were treated to a trip in the cable car to provide some inspiration.
Together, attendees at both on our on and offline workshops wrote almost 700 letters for our Donate A Letter programme. Hurrah!
A truly global community, united by kindness
Over the course of the 24 hours our online community came alive. Writers logged in across time zones, from early morning starts to late-night sessions. Every hour we had people joining us, which was magical.
It was great to see;
· New writers joining us for the first time
· Long-standing supporters returning to write again and again throughout the 24 hours
· Friends writing together virtually - some from different countries
· Children joining parents in the act of kindness
· Our community cheering each other on across continents
For 24 hours, the world felt a little smaller, and a lot kinder.
We are so grateful to every single person who gave their time, creativity and compassion this weekend. Whether you wrote one letter or ten, shared a post, invited a friend, or simply encouraged others, you were part of something truly meaningful.
If you missed the event, or are new to us and want to get involved, we’d love you to be part of our letter writing community. Whether you are writing to people you know who have cancer, or for our Donate A Letter programme, we all have the same goal in mind; keeping people with cancer connected – one letter at a time.
