The 130-mile ‘Scrambling for YANA’ egg and spoon relay in memory of Patrick Joice started at Patrick's family farm in Norfolk on 5 May 2022, culminating at the British Pig and Poultry Fair in Stoneleigh at Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire.
In memory of Patrick Joice
The event, raising funds for rural mental health charity YANA (You Are Not Alone), took place in memory of Patrick Joice, a former NFU Poultry Board member and Poultry Industry Programme (PIP) chair.
Patrick suffered from depression following the diagnosis of a rare cancer, which claimed his life in 2019.
Throughout his illness he was committed to increasing awareness around mental health, as well as raising £53,000 for YANA, which provides mental health support in East Anglia and Worcestershire for farming communities.
Find out more about Patrick’s story on the Farmers Weekly website.
Egg and spoon relay
Patrick’s family started the relay from their north Norfolk farm. Their route covered:
Friday 6 May – 33 miles South Raynham to Wisbech
Saturday 7 May – 31 miles Wisbech to Wansford (through Peterborough)
Sunday 8 May – 33 miles Wansford to Great Oxenden (near Market Harborough)
Monday 9 May – 30 miles Great Oxenden to Stareton (near Coventry)
Tuesday 10 May – 4 miles Stareton to Stoneleigh Park
Credit: Ordnance Survey
Why we did it
NFU chief poultry adviser Aimee Mahony said: “Patrick sadly passed away in 2019 and we wanted to carry on his legacy, raising awareness about mental health in farming. The route for the relay was suitably challenging, just as Patrick would have liked it. Many of our volunteers from across the poultry industry knew Patrick or have benefited from the PIP, which Patrick was a big driving force behind.”
NFU Poultry Board chair and PIP chair James Mottershead said: “This was a chance for the rural community to come together to raise awareness of mental wellbeing and champion those amazing charities such as YANA which provide vital support. It was also a chance for all those who knew Patrick to remember and celebrate the man he was and what he achieved during such a difficult part of his life.
“Patrick promoted the importance of talking about mental health. We must continue that open dialogue in honour of him and to help the many others who are dealing with mental illness every day.”