A young man is taking on a massive 180-mile walk to honour his childhood best friend who died just months after being diagnosed with leukaemia. Harry Ashcroft, 21, is walking from Liverpool to Gloucestershire in memory of Hannah Elmes, who passed away in September 2024 at just 21 years old, after a shock diagnosis in February that same year.
Harry, who moved to Liverpool for uni, remembers the moment his world turned upside down. “I remember my mum called me and told me on the phone, and I messaged Hannah not expecting a response, but she replied. I couldn’t believe it”, reported Liverpool Echo.
The pair had been inseparable since they could walk, growing up just four doors apart in the same cul-de-sac in a small village. “We’d spend weekends and summers together, cycling, walking in the snow, just always around each other,” Harry said. “She was the longest friend I’ve ever had.”
He remembers her as someone who “lit up any room,” adding, “She was very funny, sarcastic, she smiled a lot, she was warm. Just one of those people who made you feel comfortable being yourself.”
Some of his fondest memories include snowy walks when they were 13, cycling with one of them pulling the other on a skateboard, and spending every New Year’s Eve together with their families. “We were just best friends for as long as I can remember.”
Even as they got older and life took them in different directions, they always made time to check in. “Although time passed and we all grew up, Hannah remained my oldest mate. One of us would always make that little walk just to catch up.”
Now, Harry is honouring her the best way he knows how—by walking from his home in Liverpool back to their childhood hometown of South Cerney, Gloucestershire. The 180-mile journey will start on June 23, 2025 — Hannah’s birthday.
“Hannah was six months older than me, and this will be the first time I’ve ever been older than her. That’s a weird thought,” he said. “I’m sure Hannah would call me absolutely mental for doing this, but I feel that’s all the more reason to push myself to do it.”
It’s a tribute fueled by grief, love, and the bond of a lifelong friendship that even death couldn’t break.
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