A Marathon Frenzy

April was full of excitement with a marathon weekend of running that saw dozens of dedicated Frances House runners pushing themselves to the limit to raise funds for Francis House.

Amongst the tens of thousands pounding the streets of London and Manchester were 21 Francis House runners who between them raised an incredible £40,000.

Some ran in memory of loved ones, but all were united in supporting a good cause.

Teamwork

Franky Barker’s son Arlo received end of life care at Francis House and Franky together with a group of old school friends ran the Manchester Marathon by way of saying thanks to the hospice for the support that the family receive.

Franky said “Last year we lost our beautiful baby Arlo at just 2 months old. Francis House gave us the space away from the hospital to cherish the short time we did have together, and the hospice has continued to support both Gen and I, as well as our daughter Lola over the past 18 months.

“We came together to run the race in memory of baby Arlo and raise funds for Francis House so that they can continue to support families like ours in their hour of need.”

Personal goal

Martyn Cassidy set himself a challenge to run 50 races in the twelve months leading up to his 50th birthday. He achieved his goal, raising thousands of pounds in the process. One distance he didn’t get to cover was 26.2 miles of a full marathon. For Martyn completing the London Marathon was the icing on the cake.

Martyn said: “Massive thanks to everyone for your incredible support and generous donations. The capital was sweltering which made it a bit of an ordeal, but I managed it. I loved every second, it’s probably the biggest sporting spectacle I’ve ever experienced and I’ve been to two Olympic Games and a World Cup!”

Julie Williams, senior fundraising officer of Francis House expressed her gratitude to the runners, their sponsors and supporters, stating: “Whatever their motivation, we are so proud of our runners and what they have achieved. If anyone has been inspired to pull on their running shoes for Francis House, we have lots of events that you can take part in and if you have already signed up for a race, then why not run for Francis House and we will support you every step of the way.”

For more information on challenge events and activities contact the fundraising office on 0161 443 2200 or visit the Event Listing.