Meet our charity moonwalkers

The shorter nights are upon us once again here at Veg HQ, but that doesn’t stop us from keeping active and planting those good-deed seeds ready for the coming springtime. Last May we assembled a supersized team of over 30 Abel & Cole staff, friends and family to take on the overnight full and half marathons for the MoonWalk London 2019, and now looking forward to 2020 we’re going back for more! (You can read more about of previous experience here)

The charity was founded by Nina Barough, who in the mid-90s awoke one morning with the idea to Power Walk the New York City Marathon in decorated bras to raise money for a good cause. Her dream became a reality, and after much training and fundraising (which she’d never done before), 13 courageous women took to the New York street’s in their bras raising over £25,000 towards the building of the first dedicated centre for research into breast cancer. The success continued with a smaller team within the London marathon years later, from which the MoonWalk as its own event would eventually be born.

Here at Abel & Cole believe in being a positive choice for the planet – whether that’s for the environment, or for each other. Change happens when we all come together and help one another, be that in how we approach our food system, or working to eradicate illnesses like cancer that affect so many of us. Walk the Walk are also big advocates of the organic movement, understanding the importance of what we put into our bodies for our health and happiness. We’re proud to support Walk the Walk in raising funds for cancer research and treatment, and joining their worldwide community of Walkers.

With that said, we want you to meet Team Veg 2020! We have more eager veg heads joining our ranks every month, but here are a selection of our runner beans explaining why they’re willing to walk.

Anne

Anne

“I’m walking because everyone, everywhere deserves to be healthy and I believe in the power of community! I was blown away by the atmosphere at the walk this year, you could feed off the positivity and it felt amazing to do such an uplifting challenge. I can’t wait to get to that start line again next year.”

Amy

Amy

“I’m walking because I should do more exercise, and I love wearing sparkly bras, so this seemed like a good activity choice. And, in all seriousness, cancer sucks. It’s affected my family and it’s probably affected yours in some way. Walk the Walk is a small thing I can do to make a positive difference in the future. And, let’s not lie, I’m pretty excited about rewarding myself with a metric tonne of pasta after the Walk.”

Claudia

Claudia

“I’m Clauds and I love a good leg stretch. I’m walking because I asked myself, ‘why not?’ I have legs that can walk so I may as well put them to good use and raise some money. I like a challenge (but not a running challenge, thank you very much), I love a walk, and heard there was free food involved. Is there free food involved? Seriously though, it’ll be good to raise money and join the fight against cancer.”

Emily

Emily

“My lovely Auntie Jo was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years ago now and I would love to support others who have gone through the same as she did.”

Jassy

Jassy

“The MoonWalk is an amazing event that raises money for a brilliant cause and empowers people to do things they thought they couldn’t. I did The MoonWalk last year and, even on the night, I wasn’t sure I would be able to walk the whole marathon. But I did! And I enjoyed it (well, most of it). Completing The MoonWalk has given me the confidence to tackle other sports and activities that I was nervous about trying because I didn’t think I would be able to manage them. I’m excited to do The MoonWalk in 2020 and see where it leads me next.”

Mairéad

Mairéad

“Being a part of Team Veg in the 2019 MoonWalk was totally inspiring in more ways than one and I am excited to take to the streets again as part of Team Veg in 2020. Having lost several family and close friends to cancer in recent years, being able to raise much needed funds for cancer research and all in their memory is an honour. And, I get to do all this with fellow veg heads with the added challenge in 2020 to smash our 7 hour 11 minutes time. #goteamveg!”

Marta

Marta

“I had a great experience last year with Team Veg doing the walk, and this year I would love to do it again. The environment was great and everyone was very supportive along the way – it made me want to repeat the experience. Also, last year I did half a moon but this time I wanted to take on the full moon! My colleague Anne and I walked all the way together and we want to give it another try. It is a great organisation to support, and though I don’t have as much time volunteer as I’d like, I really support the work they do and want to give more of my time to them this year.”

Stef

Stef

“I love walking and if I can use it to raise money for a good cause, all the better! Cancer is devastating to anyone affected and the sooner we can find a cure or prevention, the better. If I can help just a tiny bit by putting one foot in front of the other for 26.2 miles then that’s very humbling. I’m fit and healthy, and for that I am grateful.”

Just like our veg, the team is always growing. To check out our progress or make a donation, head on over to our team page here.