On the 12th of September 2010 I ran the Robin Hood Half Marathon to raise money for the PBC Foundation, an organisation that provides free help, support and information to those affected by Primary Biliary Cirrhosis, a progressive autoimmune liver disease with no known cause or cure.

For those of you who don't know; the Robin Hood Half Marathon involves running 13.1 Miles or 21.1 Kilometres I was aiming for under 2hours and so was overjoyed when I finished at 1hr 56 (2068th out of 6143)! Before starting my training program I'd never run over a mile so it was quite a challenge but one which I thoroughly enjoyed!

Raising money for the PBC foundation is very important to me. Many of the people who know me will know that last May my mother, Kiew Thomas, passed away after a long and hard battle against Primary Biliary Cirrhosis. She was first diagnosed with PBC 20 years ago, at the time the condition was relatively unheard of. She suffered from it throughout the years but led a very full life raising me and my sister and going on to achieve a masters in cognitive behavioural therapy. Then Two years ago her condition deteriorated rapidly to the point that her liver no longer functioned properly and a transplant was her only option. In September 2007, after months of agonising waiting, where every day was a struggle for her life, we received a call from the Liver Unit at King’s College Hospital in London, to say they had a compatible liver and she would be going in to surgery within the hour!

After her transplant things were looking up, she recovered slowly and eventually reached a point where she was able to leave hospital. Unfortunately she wasn’t home for long before complications started and she was taken back in to hospital. I won’t go in to details of the next 2 years, but just say that she never managed to make it home again, she remained in hospital for 2 long hard years due to complication after complication.  

My mum was the strongest person I've ever met, I don’t think anyone will ever know how hard it was for her during those two years, but she remained an incredibly loving and positive person throughout.  

While my mum still had her health, those of you who knew her will know, that despite her condition she was an incredibly active woman, she loved keeping healthy and going to the gym, I remember very happily the times we would go to the gym together to work out. I think she would be really happy about the idea of me running the half marathon for the PBC foundation. During her  long struggle with Primary Biliary Cirrhosis; we weren't aware of the support that was available to her and I think it would make her happy to know I was supporting the foundation to help people in similar situations.

Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor us: The PBC Foundation will receive your money faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.