Hello and welcome!
On April 25th I'm going to run my first ever marathon, in London. Why would I want to do this - not just the 26 miles on the day, but the 6am dark and frozen training runs, the constantly aching calves and the blistered feet? Well, let me tell you about where I work...
I'm raising money for Family Action. As their media and campaigns manager I know the difference our work makes to people. We support families all over England who are going through very tough times - parents might have physical or mental health problems, or learning disablities; a lot of the mums and kids we work with are experiencing or getting over domestic violence. Poverty is nearly always a factor, as is social isolation.
By sponsoring me you'll be helping us develop our work and reach more families, the result of which can be literally life-changing. We work with everyone in the family to help them understand and deal with the problems they face by providing tailored support. We also give out grants and do work at the policy and campaigning level. From working here and speaking to families, the way I would describe it is to say we help people rebuild their lives so they understand how the pieces fit together and can keep building on them. Lots of families start out very isolated and end up part of a community - if you've always had that I think it's hard to appreciate how valuable it is.
You can find out lots about what we do at www.family-action.org.uk and watch some short films about our work at http://www.youtube.com/user/FamilyAction1869#p/u.
If you want to know more or would like to help in any other way with my fundraising efforts please email maddy.ryle@family-action.org.uk.
Thank you so, so much.
Maddy
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
So please dig deep and donate now.

