The K Woods Foundation

Hello again! It's been less than a week since my last blog post and here I am writing again...looks promising so far, right?!

Anyway, today I want to talk a bit about a charity that I support called The K Woods Foundation. I mentioned in my last post that I went to the Take That Experience show at The Floral Pavillion last week.  I wrote a review about it for CelebMix, which you can read here, however I wanted to take this opportunity to further write about the charity itself.

The show was held by The K Woods Foundation, in support of Dementia UK. The Foundation was launched in 2014 by Adam Woods in memory of his father, who was sadly affected by dementia. The Foundation does not have official charity status yet (although it is something that they're aiming to achieve), therefore all monies raised is directly given to Dementia UK.

Dementia is the name for a group of illnesses that affect the brain. There are several types of dementia, with the most common being Alzheimer’s disease. The typical early signs of dementia are someone becoming forgetful and confused. Other symptoms can include difficulty orientating in time and place and communication problems such as repeating themselves a lot.

According to The Alzheimer’s Society, over 850,000 people are living with dementia in the UK today. Of those, approximately 40,000 are people with young onset dementia, which affects people under the age of 65. The rates of diagnosing dementia have improved over the years but it is still significantly underdiagnosed.

It is so important to continue to raise awareness of dementia to enable an earlier diagnosis. Funds raised through Dementia UK help towards offering specialist one-to-one support and expert advice. This is done through Admiral Nurses, who are specialist dementia nurses who give expert practical, clinical and emotional support to families living with dementia to help them cope.

Whilst I have always been aware of dementia, it's never been a cause particularly close to my heart and I put that down to the fact that I've not had a personal experience of it. However, last year I became friends with Adam, and it's very hard not to support this worthy cause when you see how passionate he is about fundraising and raising awareness. It's a cause very close to his heart and it's commendable to see someone use a bad situation from their life as a motivation for helping others.

I may not have known Adam for very long, but what I have learnt about him is that he is an extremely determined and selfless individual, who dedicates his life to helping others. He is continuously planning different events and challenges in order to raise funds and awareness for dementia through The K Woods Foundation. He is such an inspiration, and his passion and drive for making a difference is so apparent. Thanks to him I have gained a new understanding for dementia and I realise the importance of raising awareness for this heart-breaking cause.

I just wanted to share how proud I am of @adam_woods1234 🙌 he is one of the most selfless people I've ever come across and he works tirelessly to fundraise for Dementia UK through @thekwoodsfoundation. He is always doing something to raise much needed funds for an extremely worthy cause that's close to his heart, and last night was no different. After a year of planning, his event at The Floral Pavillion raised over £4000 for charity. It was a brilliant night and it was great to see a stage full of talent and a big crowd giving their support. I'm super proud to know this amazing guy - he is a true inspiration to many including myself. I am in awe at his dedication to charity and I can only aspire to be more like him. Russell Grant made a great speech about him last night - I'm confident that one day Adam will get rewarded for his phenomenal work. He's gonna hate me for posting this lol but he deserves all the recognition 🌟

A photo posted by Katrina ✌ (@hey_itskatrina) on Feb 27, 2016 at 2:37pm PST

The Take That Experience night at the Floral Pavillion raised over £5500 for Dementia UK, which is an outstanding achievement. It was a privilege to be a part of such a fantastic night, and amazing to see the outcome of all of Adam's hard work. It was also wonderful to see so many people come together to raise money and awareness for this cause! This was the third Take That Experience night held at The Floral by The K Woods Foundation, and it was a credit to Adam to see how many of the performers and audience members had returned to support the event once again this year.

Whilst there is no cure for dementia, it is vitally important to keep raising as much money and awareness as possible. Dementia is a very heart-breaking illness, for both the sufferers and their families. Admiral Nurses are a wonderful help to families and the support they provide is invaluable during the caring journey.

I also wanted to share this video by 15-year-old Harry Gardner who has released a song in honour of his gran who is living with dementia. The heartfelt song really hits home how the illness affects everyone involved. The song has already raised awareness of the cause, with over 120,000 views on YouTube. You can download the song on iTunes or Amazon. Watch the video for 'Not Alone - Song For Alzheimer's' below.





The K Woods Foundation already has several events planned for this year, including a Black and White Ball, a Gary Barlow tribute night, as well as another Take That night at the Floral next year. No doubt that Adam will also be taking on many more physical challenges too as he loves pushing himself to the limit!! I look forward to supporting the events as much as possible - the concerts are always phenomenal and even more worthwhile as you know that the money raised is going towards a good cause.

If you would like to learn more about The K Woods Foundation then check out their website. You can also follow them on Twitter and Facebook.

You can also read more about dementia on the official Dementia UK website.

This blog post isn't much, but I wanted to try and help raise awareness in some way. I really hope that by reading this, you too can be inspired to help raise awareness of dementia - together we can make a difference to help provide the Admiral Nurses service and to help families who's lives are affected by dementia.

Hwyl am y tro ✌️