Please join us on Friday 16th October to celebrate, and raise money for, Gemma Lee and her family.

Just by purchasing a ticket you'll already be supporting the cause as £10 from every ticket will go straight towards Gemma's fund. On the evening itself there'll be good food, good vibes and plenty of chances to get involved in activities and games.

Included in your ticket:

• Welcome drink

• Pie and pea supper from Petch’s Pies in Great Ayton

• DJ set from The Beat Boutique

❤️ GEMMA LEE — HER STORY

45 years young. One incredible fight. One amazing woman.

Before all of this began, Gemma was simply living her life. A wife. A mum. A daughter. A friend.

She was fit, active and healthy — the sort of person who was always on the go. She ran half marathons, kept herself incredibly fit and loved spending time with her family. Then, in the late summer of 2018, things started to change. At first, it was little things. Gemma noticed she wasn’t thinking clearly. She couldn’t seem to get herself organised in the way she normally would. She had completed a half marathon, but afterwards she didn’t recover like she usually did. Something just didn’t feel right.

Then came an overwhelming tiredness. Gemma could sit down for five minutes and fall asleep — despite being fitter than she’d ever been. Then her vision in her left eye started to change. She described it as being “like looking underwater.” She knew something wasn’t right. Gemma went back and forth to the doctors, but there were initially no answers. Eventually, she was referred to the eye hospital, where doctors noticed that the pupils in her eyes weren’t reacting normally.

That led to a CT scan.

Then an MRI.

And shortly before Christmas, everything changed.

Gemma and her family were called into the consultant neurologist’s office. They were told there was a brain tumour. But they were reassured that the consultant believed it was most likely benign. A biopsy was planned for January. At that point, Gemma still believed this was something she would get through. But after the biopsy came the news nobody could ever be prepared for.

It wasn’t benign.

Gemma had been diagnosed with a stage 4 glioblastoma. In that moment, the bottom fell out of her world.

🧠 THE FIGHT BEGINS

Gemma immediately began treatment. She went through 30 rounds of chemotherapy and 30 rounds of radiotherapy. The treatment took an enormous toll. The woman who had been running half marathons and living such an active life was now a shadow of her former self. At one point, everyone around her feared she wouldn’t make it to the end of the year. But Gemma wasn’t finished fighting. A second opinion in London with Dr Rees brought a different perspective. She was told that what appeared to be progression could instead be inflammation caused by the radiotherapy.

And she was given some of the most important advice of her life: Get living.

So that’s exactly what Gemma tried to do. She decided she couldn’t face more chemotherapy and signed a disclaimer. But the fight continued.

❤️ DOING WHATEVER IT TAKES

Gemma and her family began looking for anything that could give her more time. They discovered a drug in America which offered hope, but Gemma was too ill to travel. Eventually, they found an almost identical version in Germany.

The cost?

Around £5,000 every month.

The family made the incredibly difficult decision to sell their former home to help fund the treatment for the first year. But they knew they couldn’t keep doing it alone. So they started fundraising. Eventually, last year, Gemma was able to access the treatment through compassionate use — something that has been a genuine game changer for her. And today, Gemma remains stable.

For someone living with this cancer, stability is something to be incredibly grateful for. But staying stable comes at a huge financial cost. Her treatment is not one simple medication. It is a combination of treatments and therapies, including hyperbaric oxygen treatment, red-light therapy and a huge number of supplements. It is an expensive cocktail. And it is all being done for one reason:

To give Gemma more time.

More time with her husband. More time with her children. More birthdays. More family holidays. More laughs. More memories. More life.

💗 WHY THIS EVENT?

Gemma has never asked for sympathy. What she wants is time. And that’s why tonight means so much. Every pound raised tonight will help Gemma continue accessing the treatments and therapies that are helping to keep her stable. Despite everything she has been through, Gemma still needs a little help with the pennies. And that’s what this event is about. It’s about family. It’s about friends. It’s about people coming together for someone who has spent years showing just how strong one person can be.

❤️ ONE WOMAN. ONE FAMILY. ONE FIGHT.

Gemma is 45. She has already defied expectations. And she isn’t finished yet.

T&Cs

• We don't offer refunds on event tickets. Many of our events are popular and become sold out, therefore we cannot issue a refund if you change your mind or cannot go. We will, however, allow you to sell or give away your tickets to someone else.

• If you or anyone in your party have a dietary requirement please email events@whinstoneview.com to inform and for an alternative food option to be arranged if necessary. 

• We have limited car parking spaces, we highly recommend lift sharing or being dropped off.

• Please note we do not allow over night parking on our premises.

• Photographs and video recordings may be taken at our events for use in future promotional materials, including on our website and social media channels. If you do not wish to appear in any such materials, please notify us prior to or during the event. If no notification is received, consent will be assumed.

• All event details are correct at the time of launch, but details may change without notice given.

• Sometimes we may have to cancel or reschedule an event - you will be notified via email and will be entitled to a refund.