Ellen MacArthur Christmas Card
Dame Ellen MacArthur has put her artistic talents to festive use by designing the Christmas card for her eponymous young people’s cancer charity.
The record-breaking round the world yachtswoman has sketched the simple illustration of an Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust yacht heeling beneath the stars, under the words ‘All is calm all is bright.’
The Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust supports young people aged 8-24 to rebuild their confidence after cancer. When treatment ends the Trust’s work begins as for many young people just picking up where they left off before their diagnosis isn’t possible.
Ellen said: “The card captures the positive sense of hope young people feel through their involvement with the Trust. After the devastation of cancer, they are sailing towards calm and bright futures.”
Young people in recovery are empowered – physically, mentally and emotionally – on Trust trips as they make friends with others who have been through the same thing, rediscover their independence and learn new skills. This all helps rebuild their confidence for them to re-engage with education, employment and socially.
Every day at least 11 children and young people are told they have cancer. Thankfully survival rates are increasing, but for every young person the Trust currently works with in recovery there are nine it can’t. Yet.
To support young people in rebuilding their lives after cancer this Christmas, visit www.ellenmacarthurcancertrust.org
The Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust is a national organisation that takes young people between the ages of 8-24 on sailing trips to help them rebuild their confidence after cancer treatment and re-engage with education, employment, and society. The young people that join them have spent long periods in hospital and can be suffering from low self-esteem and loss of confidence as well as missing out on large parts of their childhood.
The four-day sailing trips are a unique and life-changing experience for the young people that join them, but they are about much more than just sailing. “Sailing is just a vehicle”, says Trust founding, Patron Ellen MacArthur. “It’s about regaining your life. The joy of the Trust trips is overwhelming, there are always transformations.”
The young people are initially invited to take part in a four-day sailing trip on yachts in the Solent on the South Coast of England or on the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, which are run throughout the summer holidays. They are all about having fun; and regaining a sense of independence. Crewing on-board a 45- foot boat with other young people in the same situation allows them to feel normal again, for once they aren’t the only kid in the room with cancer, it’s the perfect blend of empowerment, challenge, and distraction.
After the initial trip, the Trust annually invites young people back to take part in other sailing events until they are 24. Inviting the young people back to take part in other events enables the Trust to establish ongoing relationships with them. Once the young people are over 24 the charity train those who are interested so they can return as volunteers to help on the trips. This is where the Trust really stands out as a Return to Sail programme provides the extended support many young people need.