Sir Andrew Strauss: "We are thoroughly blown away by the support we've received. It really is extraordinary; it's going to go towards trying to support all of those 23,000 parents who are diagnosed with a terminal condition every year - help them prepare their families"
Monday 16 August 2021 20:51, UK
Sir Andrew Strauss said he was "blown away by the support" as it was revealed that the Ruth Strauss Foundation successfully raised over £1.2m during the Lord's Test between England and India.
Speaking on the difference the money will make to the charity, which works with families facing the death of a parent, Strauss said: "On the back of this, we're going to make a real difference. There's no doubt about it.
"We are thoroughly blown away by the support we've received. It really is extraordinary.
"It's going to go towards trying to support all of those 23,000 parents who are diagnosed with a terminal condition every year - help them prepare their families.
"That means us employing more councillors and us extending our reach around the country. It allows us to do it quicker than perhaps we would have done it otherwise. We're on fast-forward mode now.
"We know we're on to something here. We know people need that support, our job is to provide it."
Former England captain Strauss established the Ruth Strauss Foundation after his wife, Ruth, passed away at the age of 46 in 2018 from a non-smoking lung cancer.
According to the Children Bereavement Network, around 41,000 children under the age of 18 are affected by the loss of a parent each year in the UK.
The Ruth Strauss Foundation aims to support families facing the death of a parent and drive more research into non-smoking lung cancers.
In its efforts to raise awareness, day two of the second Test saw Lord's once again go #RedForRuth, with fans in attendance on Friday donning red items of clothing in support of the foundation.
Speaking during the Test, Strauss stressed the importance of families dealing with terminal illness of a loved one having professional help to support them.
"You want to protect your kids from this awful ordeal," Strauss said
"So having the right kind of support to facilitate those conversations can make life a little bit easier while you are going through it and a lot easier when the children and parents are left behind."
Strauss was joined on #RedForRuth Day by BBC sports presenter Mark Chapman, whose wife Sara passed away from cancer last year and who is an ambassador for the Ruth Strauss Foundation.
Chapman explained how professional support helped him and his family and encouraged those in such situations to take the "timidity" out of death.
"She [Sara] instigated an awful lot of that and didn't want her life to be defined by cancer or mine and the kids' lives to be defined by it. She was passionate about children and families being prepared."
England captain Joe Root also spoke of how the Ruth Strauss Foundation put cricket into perspective and was on his mind as he continued his stunning Test form in 2021 with a score of 180 not out in the first innings against India.
Root said: "One thing in the front of my mind more than anything was #RedForRuth Day.
"You look at what Straussy and his family and what a number of other families in the country have been through and will go through.
"When you put that into perspective with what you are doing, it is a small challenge in front of you compared to what they have to deal with."
