On Saturday 18 November, a group of five archdiocesan employees took on the challenge of a sponsored walk from the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King to the church of St Oswald’s and St Edmund Arrowsmith in Ashton-in-Makerfield.

The walk was to raise funds for former archdiocesan employee John Smith. He suffered life-changing injuries after an accident at home in 2020.

He has spent the last three years between hospital and care facilities. After three years, he is now set to move back home in the new year. His home is now undergoing work to facilitate his needs.

In total, the walk was just over 17 miles, taking just over five-and-a-half hours complete, excluding breaks.

The team consisted of; Head of Finance John McMahon, Accountant Michael Helbert, Finance Office Manager Sharne Kelso, IT Coordinator James Bainbridge, and Communications Assistant Steven Hughes.

They set off just past 8am from the bottom of the Cathedral steps. From there, they came out of the city centre, and ended up on Queens Drive via Wavertree Technology Park. They then went through Broadgreen (past the train station) and into Huyton, where the first rest point was.

Just past 11am, the team reached St Aidan’s Parish Centre, which is just outside Huyton town centre. Whilst there, Jackie, who is the manager of the parish centre, lay on a tray of biscuits and refreshments, as everyone enjoyed a short break.

Around 20 minutes later, the team was back on the road. They went up the hill and into Prescot village, and after a short stop at a pastry shop, took St Helens Road, and into St Helens, where the second rest stop was.

The second rest stop was at Holy Cross parish centre, just over the road from St Helens bus station, where Janet, the mum of Finance Administrator Dominic Redcliffe and a volunteer at the parish, had opened the Parish Hall and took the group in.

Whilst there, plenty of food was on offer, with sausage rolls, pastries, and other snacks.

We would like to thank both parish centres for their hospitality and allowing the team to take some much-needed rests.

Director of Finance Jill Boggan was also on hand at both parish centres, providing moral support and brought food of her own.

The final leg of the walk was the toughest. After coming out of St Helens town centre, they then headed straight through into Haydock and onto the East Lancs Road and into Ashton-in-Makerfield from there.

Having set off just past 8am, the team arrived at St Oswald and St Edmund Arrowsmith at just past 3:30pm.

After a brief sit down, Fr John Gorman arrived and gave everyone a church tour, including a viewing of the Holy Hand.

It was a nice end to what had been a very full day. Just before 5pm, everyone setoff for home for a well-deserved rest.

You can still donate to the cause here.