00:02With music pumping and energy high, the wheels are in motion to fundraise for
00:07Meningitis Research Foundation in memory of Juliet Kenny, a former member of the
00:12McNaid Cafe team who lost her life during the Canterbury meningitis outbreak in March.
00:17This morning I just said let's make Juliet proud, that's the most important
00:20thing and then if we can fundraise and get lots of money along the way as well
00:24that would be the dream. You know having children of my own as well I look at
00:28that and I reflect and I go this is such an important thing to know and
00:31understand, to know the signs, to to understand what to look out for and
00:36because it is just such a tragic thing and I think we all sort of want to do
00:40something with that. Juliet's friends, family and co-workers have all came here
00:45today to cycle for the cause. They're trying to reach a goal of 1,447 kilometres
00:51from 9 till 5 p.m. and before 12 they already reached halfway to their goal
00:58and now they're at 850 kilometres, well on their way to reaching the end point.
01:03And that 900 miles is significant because it's the equivalent distance of here to Verona
01:09and Verona was one of Juliet's favourite places and so we thought that that would
01:12be a really nice landmark and a goal for us to get to. So we've got Italy on the
01:17screen as well keeping us going. Meningitis Research Foundation will be our charity for a
01:21whole year so through to sort of May time next year. We'll do tons more fundraising events
01:25and we'll have to come up with a load more ideas. She was an incredible, incredible individual
01:29and really this is about leaving a legacy for her and her her legacy so it's yeah it's
01:34really special. The fundraiser has already passed £3,500, more than double its original
01:40target. That money will support Meningitis Research Foundation's work and its campaign
01:45for wider protection against MenBee. Meningitis is a very complex disease. We still have so
01:52much about it that we don't know. For example, the Kent outbreak looks like the bacteria has
01:59evolved and done something new. The UK Health Security Agency has said it's an unprecedented
02:04outbreak. We have to find out why the bacteria does this and that's basic research. We need
02:09to keep understanding what's happening in order to prevent it happening again in future.
02:14Everybody who's here today is joining around that family to make something really, really
02:20positive happen for them. For her family, friends, co-workers and the wider community, the grief
02:26of losing Juliet is still very present. But through this fundraiser, they hope to turn that loss
02:31into awareness, research and better protection for others. Kristen Hawthorne, KMTV, in Faversham.
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