Hastings charity helps fund the Stronger for Life Reconditioning Project

A charity set up in memory of a young Hastings man is supporting a crucial reconditioning hospital initiative.

The #DoItForJosh charity aims to raise £4,000 to help support the award-winning Stronger for Life Reconditioning Project, previously known as the Active Sussex Reconditioning Project.

Becky Alexander, who set up the #DoItForJosh charity a year after her 21-year-old son Josh died in a car accident in June 2023, heard about the hospital project through Josh’s former colleagues at Active Hastings.

She said the project resonated with the charity for two key reasons.

She said: “Josh worked with Active Hastings on their weight management programme, as well as working for Freedom Leisure and as a personal trainer. 

“Josh was so passionate about health and wellbeing. He used to run group exercise classes and often charged very little, as it was very much for them. He just wanted people to come and take part. 

“He was always just really passionate about getting people into physical activity and sport.”

She added: “My partner Andy, the charity’s co-founder and Josh’s dad, passed away last year after having a stroke, so I really wanted to do something to support stroke rehabilitation. 

“Andy was a very proud man and very fit and active.

“I imagine, like a lot of people, he would have found it very difficult to go from being very strong, healthy and active to not being able to move his body.

“We believe that this service would have been invaluable for him and will be for countless others on their road to recovery.”

The Stronger for Life Reconditioning Project sees Active Sussex health instructors from 20:20 Health run exercise sessions at the Bexhill Irvine Unit, working with stroke patients and other patients who are prone to deconditioning and need more movement in hospital.

Since the project’s launch in August 2024, it has gone from working with the Bexhill Irvine Unit, part of the East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, to now being live-streamed to multiple hospitals and hospital trusts around Sussex.

Thanks to funding from the #DoItForJosh charity, the project will continue until at least June 1, 2026, with the hope that further fundraising from the charity will mean it can continue even longer.

Karen Poole, AHP Rehabilitation Consultant at East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, said: “The funding support from local organisations like ‘Do it for Josh Charity’ is a lifeline, enabling us to continue piloting new approaches to keeping people active whilst in hospital.

“This collaboration continues to demonstrate that when we work together as a collective community across health, care and charitable partners, we can have a real impact on our patients’ health and wellbeing.”

Ross Joannides, Strategic Relationship Manager for Health at Active Sussex, added: “The support from Do It For Josh goes far beyond funding, it is bringing hope, encouragement and opportunity to patients across the whole of Sussex at a time when they need it most.

“By enabling additional sessions for the Stronger for Life Reconditioning project, this generosity is helping people rebuild not only their physical strength, but also their confidence, independence and sense of connection during recovery.

“It is a powerful reminder of the lasting impact communities can have when statutory health services and local charities work hand in hand to achieve greater health outcomes for our residents.”

Jas Gray, from 20/20 Health, added: “Having #DoItForJosh supporting this project really showcases what this project has brought to light, that when you bring together various sectors together to work collaboratively nothing is unachievable.”

To help raise money, Becky and the running group she belongs to – Heart and Sole Runners – are taking on the Three Castles 50km Ultra Marathon, which will see them run from Rochester to Tunbridge in Kent within nine hours.

The charity is also holding its annual football tournament at Horntye Park in Hastings on September 6, featuring football matches, a barbecue, a bouncy castle and a family fun day.

You can support the charity via the JustGiving page www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/becky-alexander-2 or via the charity’s website: www.doitforjosh.com/

You can also follow the charity on Facebook: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61560717163466