Embrace’s mascot Alfie bear continues his whirlwind tour of Europe thanks to our cycling fund-raising duo John and Andrew.

John Brocklebank and Andrew Footer, both former detectives, are 400 miles into a 500 mile tour across Belgium and Holland – raising funds for young victims of crime with every peddle.

Starting in Bury St Edmunds on Wednesday 1 May, the tour will take in Harwich, Hook of Holland, Haarlem, Amersfoort, Vianen, Eindhoven, Belgium, Eindhoven, Breda, Dortrecht, Kinderdijk, Rotterdam, before retuning to Hook of Holland, Harwich and back home to Bury St Edmunds.

Thanks to John, Alfie has enjoyed the Flemish countryside, been caught in a rain storm or two and enjoyed many an evening of local hospitality.

The pair have now reached their £500 fund-raising target – which will pay for a 12-week programme of talking therapy for a child suffering acute trauma.

John and Andy investigated serious and major crimes for over 25 years and dealt personally with families in the most unimaginable of circumstances – witnessing first hand the pain caused to children by serious crime.

John said: ‘It’s been a fabulous experience cycling around the Netherlands – Alfie the Embrace Bear has been well received and the support along the way has been brilliant. We’re delighted to have hit our fundraising target – the money raised will make a real difference.’

Embrace Child Victims of Crime helps children and families across the UK recover from the impact of serious crime including homicide, sexual and domestic abuse, knife crime and other forms of violence and neglect.

Anne Campbell, Embrace Chief Executive, said: “John is one of our most prolific fund-raisers and we salute his and Andrew’s sporting efforts to help young children affected by crime – though Embrace HQ thinks Alfie bear may need a holiday to recover when they return home!”

To donate visit – https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/john-brocklebank1 

For further information about Embrace visit www.embracecvoc.org.uk