{"id":3278,"date":"2026-03-05T15:16:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-05T15:16:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.andrewwickscreative.co.uk\/clients\/nsif-dev\/?page_id=3278"},"modified":"2026-09-14T11:25:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-14T10:25:14","slug":"our-champions-and-ambassadors","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.andrewwickscreative.co.uk\/clients\/nsif-dev\/our-champions-and-ambassadors\/","title":{"rendered":"Our champions and ambassadors"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Our champions and ambassadors<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Introducing Claire Lomas MBE & Stuart 'Pid' Hall <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Claire Lomas and her family and friends have been fundraising for nsif for a number of years now and are real champions for Spinal Cord Injuries.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tClaire died in 2024 \u2013 we caught up with her best friend, Stuart \u2018Pid\u2019 Hall, who continues to raise money for nsif in Claire\u2019s memory.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\u201cBuilt on love, trust and laughter\u201d: Pid\u2019s story of his best friend, Claire Lomas MBE<\/strong>
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When Stuart \u201cPid\u201d Hall talks about the late, great Claire Lomas MBE, something shifts in his voice. There\u2019s affection, pride and, ultimately, love; to him, Claire wasn\u2019t defined by the wheelchair people saw first. She was defined by the way that wheelchair disappeared the moment she spoke.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was such an open, lovely person,\u201d Pid says. \u201cHer personality was superb. She made everyone she talked to feel special.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a simple description, but it captures the essence of Claire: a person whose determination reshaped what people believed was possible.<\/p>\n

Pid met Claire shortly after she completed her extraordinary walk of the London Marathon in a robotic suit. Their local town was hosting its annual sports awards, and Pid, who ran a family business engraving trophies, had prepared one for her. He didn\u2019t know her yet, but he approached her afterwards and said, \u201cIf you ever need anything, just let me know.\u201d<\/p>\n

She emailed the next day, and the rest is history!<\/p>\n

Pid said: \u201cFrom that moment, we were just friends forever. We trusted each other completely. Our friendship was built on love and trust and laughter.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That trust became the backbone of a decade of fundraising challenges and events. Whatever challenges or obstacles they encountered along the way, they faced them with humour:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had some tough times,\u201d Pid admits. \u201cThings didn\u2019t always go to plan. But we always found the funny side.\u201d<\/p>\n

There wasn\u2019t really a grand target in mind for Claire \u2013 she was just one of those people that wanted to show others that, if you put your mind to something, you can achieve anything.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe never expected to raise big amounts,\u201d Pid says. \u201cIt was always small donations that just kept building and building.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until they reached \u00a3900,000 that the possibility of a million felt real. Even then, it seemed distant. But the number itself wasn\u2019t what mattered to Claire. What mattered was the message behind every pound: that disability didn\u2019t define her, and it shouldn\u2019t define anyone else.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\u201cShe wanted people to see that if she could try something, they could too,\u201d Pid says. \u201cShe didn\u2019t want to say no to anything.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Claire took every opportunity, even the terrifying ones. Especially the terrifying ones!<\/p>\n

Claire\u2019s walk of the London Marathon brought her global attention, but the challenge she cherished most was the Northwest 200 motorbike course in Northern Ireland. She had never ridden a motorbike on the road before.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was really nervous,\u201d Pid remembers. \u201cBut when she got off the motorbike, she was elated. That one stayed with her.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was classic Claire: stepping into the unknown and refusing to be limited by fear.<\/p>\n

Pid continued the fundraising after Claire passed away; not just for the cause, but to keep her memory alive for her daughters, for her family and for the thousands she inspired.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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The moment that stands out most came at the Great South Run. Only Pid and one member of the Great Run team knew they had reached the million-pound mark. He kept it secret, deliberately avoiding updates on the fundraising pages.<\/p>

He wanted to announce it on the start line.<\/p>

Standing in front of Claire\u2019s parents, Martin and Joyce, and her husband, Dan, he shared the news. Their shock, their pride, their emotion – that moment, he says, will stay with him forever:<\/p>

\u201cIt was incredibly emotional. That\u2019s the one that sticks with me more than anything in the last 18 months.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>

Ask Pid to describe Claire\u2019s legacy, and he pauses – not because he doesn\u2019t know what to say, but because there\u2019s so much to choose from.<\/p>

\u201cShe never gave up,\u201d he says finally. \u201cShe\u2019d attempt anything. She didn\u2019t know if she could do it, but she\u2019d give it a go. And she encouraged everyone else to do the same.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>

Her story is full of extraordinary achievements, but the heart of her legacy is simple: try. Take the opportunity. Don\u2019t say no before you\u2019ve even begun.<\/p>

It\u2019s a message she lived by – and one she passed on to everyone who met her, including the man who became her closest friend.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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The Hull and East Riding Branch, Yorkshire\n<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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John and Angela Pye got involved with nsif after their eldest son, Steven, contracted a virus on his spine that caused paralysis from the chest down. That was in the summer of 2007, and the prognosis from the doctors was that he would never walk again. However, his absolute determination and commitment to rehabilitation and physiotherapy has seen him improve to the extent he is now able to walk with sticks.<\/p>

His efforts inspired his parents to take up the challenge and raise awareness of, and funding for, a treatment for spinal injury. When they found out about David’s story, they felt an immediate affinity for what David and his family had been through. They recognised the desperation of a parent trying to do everything possible for his son, and wanted to donate their time towards furthering nsif’s cause.<\/p>

Ever since, they have worked tirelessly to fundraise for nsif, running local events in Hull and East Riding of Yorkshire. All the money they raise is ringfenced for spinal injury research at UCL, continuing the work pioneered by the late Professor Geoffrey Raisman, whose integrity and dedication to curing spinal injury remains an endless source of inspiration to the Pyes.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Patrons<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Our Patrons play a vital role in powering nsif\u2019s work and we are exceptionally grateful for their support.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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