Published on: 27 January 2025
When Jack Layzell’s grandad Barry Whitehead was suffering from Alzheimers, he knew he wanted to give something back and help other families affected by the disease.
So, having never been a runner before, he laced up his trainers and challenged himself to run the Robin Hood half marathon in Nottingham to raise money for two of the organisations that supported Barry: the Dementia Rapid Response Team at Derbyshire Healthcare Foundation NHS Trust, and the Alzheimers Society.
“I’d set myself a goal of under two hours, but the donations just kept coming in,” he said. “On the morning of the race I put a Facebook post up to say I was ready for it, and within 45 minutes I’d had another 25 donations.
“That really spurred me on to do well, so I said to my mate I was running with, right, let’s just go for it then!”
Jack, 23, crossed the finish line in just one hour and 43 minutes, smashing his target. But his success had one downside – mum Debbie and grandma Sylvia missed him coming in.
“We weren’t expecting him to come in so soon!” laughed Debbie.
Jack, from Hempshill Vale in Nottingham, managed to raise £2,300, which was split equally , and this week he, Debbie and Sylvia visited the Dementia Rapid Response Team at Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust’s Kingsway site with a host of useful tools they can use with their patients, ranging from nostalgia books to weighted baby dolls, stuffed animals and activity toys.
Service manager Pam Holburn said: “We can’t thank Jack enough. All of these things will really help our team when they go out to see their patients.
“Every day our staff go out to visit patients in their own homes and use non-pharmalogical interventions – things like therapies, activities and subtle changes to a person’s environment – to prevent hospital admission. The childhood games and books that Jack has donated evoke a sense of nostalgia, and there is a sensory aspect to the dolls and the stuffed animals which are all stimulation for people who no longer have language.”
She added: “They will help so many people for many years to come.”
Anyone interested in raising money or donating to Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust can do so through the Trust's charitable fund. Learn more at https://derbyshirehealthcareft.nhs.uk/donate
