NEW YORK MARATHON 2008!

I would like to take this opportunity to ask for your support for what should prove to be one of the greatest and most exciting challenges of my life. I have decided to run the New York Marathon this coming November in an effort to raise money for two charities that lay very close to my heart; The MS Society and children’s cancer charity Fight for Life. (Don’t worry you won’t have to run!)

As you may know my aunt has suffered from MS for more than 20 years. A cruel and disabling neurological disease, it affects more than 85,000 people in the UK and there is still no cure. It is not infectious and we do not know why one person contracts it over another.

Her character considering the quality of life is an inspiration to us all. A happy, caring and all-round remarkable person, she is both a close friend and mentor. The MS society has invested more than £50 million in bio-medical and applied research and currently has a £11 million commitment to around 50 projects across the UK. It relies on its income almost entirely from voluntary donations.

I am also donating half the money I raise to Fight for Life, a charity that both my parents have worked on since its inception. Fight for Life is an inspiring organisation that raises funds to purchase vital equipment for the children’s radiotherapy unit at the UCH in central London which services all of Great Ormond St’s radiotherapy needs. It also supports and pays for the unit’s play area which makes the whole trauma of treatment less frightening.
 
Many of us have friends or family who have been affected in some way by these illnesses and therefore can relate to how life-destroying they can be. This is my first marathon and major fundraising event and I have set myself a minimum fundraising target of £10,000, so I am asking you to be as generous as possible to help me support these two deserving causes.

Please be sure to tick the giftaid box to ensure the charities can claim an extra 28% on top of your donation.

Thank you for your generosity!