Nothing was going to stop the marathon run-ners this year. Not the pandemic nor the weather. They found a way! On October 4th the elite runners gathered in London to run their race but amateurs were left to DIY. The rules were simple. Run your own route to achieve your 26.2 miles. And they did! You may well have seen some of them. We are aware that there were many locals taking part in the marathon that day. It was an absolutely dreadful day, so the efforts these determined souls went to were even more heroic. Con-gratulations to you all. Here are just a couple of stories:
Laleham Park was the setting for a group ef-fort by members of Rotary and St John Fisher church, who were supporting Fran Kenden. Fran herself was doing the full marathon (she has done over 22 so was very experienced and able), but was accompa-nied by runners and walkers from St John Fisher Church and Rotary throughout the day who joined for a mile. It was tough go-ing in the dreadful weath-er but the smiles said it all. They were in it together and were making a difference. Well done to all those involved. Their efforts raised £3000 which will be shared between Rotary, who will be supporting the vulnerable in our com-munities this winter and St John Fisher church who are fund raising to send sick pilgrims to Lourdes.
Tiffany MacDonald from Coco Beauty & Skincare mean-while was run-ning to raise money for Parkinson’s UK. This cause is close to her family and her heart. Tiffany’s Father In-Law was misdiag-nosed and sadly past away still medically undiagnosed with this awful disease. Her aim is to raise money to help the continued research for Parkinson’s UK ‘Find A Cure’. With the pandemic and uncertainty that the run would still go ahead, training did lapse at times… but she did it with 45,000 other runners around the world and 75 who were running for Parkin-son’s UK.
If you would like to help support Parkin-son’s UK her funding page is www.justgiving.com/fundraising/tiffanymacdonald
It was the first ever Virtual London Mara-thon. The weather was horrid but with the support of family and friends runners every-where were helped with every step. Congratulations to you all You are amazing!