Participants will camp under the stunning nighttime stars and experience local cuisine and culture and at the same time raise money for Acorns and its lifeline care for children with life limiting and life threatening conditions and support for their families.
Aimee, from Wolverhampton, said: “My daughter Olivia receives care at Acorns. She has complex needs with a profound genetic disorder. It has been very difficult for us as a family to get any time together, and it’s been very challenging.
“To have Acorns able to offer us support as a family was life-changing. It has meant the world to us, not only in offering respite care but for its sibling sessions too.”
Olivia, now aged four, has a condition called ‘1p36 Deletion Syndrome’ and also suffers from profound learning and physical difficulties.
Aimee added: “I felt like I needed to give something in return to Acorns for all their care and support so I recruited a team of girls to take part in the Sahara Trek. We’re calling ourselves the Sahara Sisters.”
After trekking with #TeamAcorns across the desert in temperatures of up to 35 degrees, they will also spend two days helping a community project in the African city of Marrakech, which supports vulnerable and homeless people.
Aimee said: “We want to raise money and awareness for Acorns, and to celebrate the great work the charity does. The more money raised means more children and families can be helped.
“The work Acorns does is amazing, the hospice is first class and the care they have given our daughter Olivia in particular has been incredible.
“I wanted to do something a bit different and the Sahara Trek really stood out. I’m really looking forward to it and we’ve been out buying bits of kit already.”
She added: “My essential item is a really good sleeping bag which I bought in the Black Friday sales. While I absolutely love the heat, I’ve heard it can get very cold during the night even though it’s in the middle of the desert.”
But, most of all, Aimee is looking forward to a once-in-a-lifetime challenge and being miles away from civilisation.
Aimee said: “I’m just looking forward to being in the middle of no-where, with no phone signal and being somewhere without single sound.”
Sophie Boreham, Events Manager at Acorns, added: “There’s still time to join our Acorns Sahara Trek so you can do something amazing for us like Aimee and her friends.
“Not only is this a chance to take part in the trip of a lifetime, you’ll also be supporting Acorns and the vital care of local children with short lives. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
A film charting last year’s Sahara trek won an award at the Royal Television Society Midlands Awards earlier in November. Ark Media Group followed the adventurers on their journey and picked up the award for the inspiring film titled ‘Acorns Children’s Hospice: The Sahara Desert Journey’.
Acorns Children’s Hospice provides specialist palliative care for babies, children and young people with life limiting and life threatening conditions, and support for their families.
In the past year, the charity has cared for more than 780 children across the West Midlands, and supported over 1,000 families, including those who are bereaved.
This care and support is provided from Acorns three hospices, based in Birmingham, Walsall and Worcester, and in the community.
Acorns needs around £35,000 each day to provide its children’s hospice care, with two thirds of that amount coming from generous donations and fundraising by the local community.
Sign up to take part in the Acorns Sahara Trek 2025 – registration must be made by 10 January – and watch the award-winning film by visiting www.acorns.org.uk/sahara
