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I have previously supported the Welsh Guards Afghanistan Appeal in memory of my very dear friend Lt Colonel Rupert Thorneloe MBE, 1st Battalion Welsh Guards who was killed in action in Helmand Province on 1st July 2009. Rupert is survived by his wife and two young children. It is my privilege to be godfather to the eldest, Hannah.

Six other soldiers under Rupert's command were killed during the 2009 tour and a number sustained serious injury. The battalion is currently preparing for redeployment to Afghanistan in early 2012.

In 2010 I ran (mostly) the Belfast and Dublin marathons and in 2011 I completed the London, Belfast, Newry and Dublin marathons and have entered this year's Edinburgh marathon.

Recently I was approached by my colleague and former rugby team mate Andy G, who suggested that it would be a good idea to enter the "Wall Ultra Run Event" which takes in the 69 mile length of Hadrian's Wall from Carlisle to Gateshead over 23rd/24th June 2012 in support of WGAA. As I will be training for Edinburgh I thought why not give it a go. Our target is to complete the distance in less than 24 hours. We have also entered the Belfast marathon at the beginning of May.

We are also be taking part in these events in memory of another very dear friend, RUC GC Constable Jon Reid, killed in the execution of his duty in Crossmaglen on 25th Februrary 1993 and our former Banbridge RFC team mate L/Cpl Stephen McKee, 1st Battalion Royal Irish Regiment, killed in action in Afghanistan on 9th March 2011

Any money raised will go to soldiers wounded on operations and also the families and dependents of those killed in action. Please have a look at the Welsh Guards Afghanistan Appeal website to get more of an idea of where the money will go http://www.welshguardsappeal.com/

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 - we raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

The generosity of those who have previously made donations to WGAA in connection with my fundraising activities in 2010/2011 has been overwhelming and for that I thank you all.

This continues to be an extremely worthy cause so once again we ask you to consider giving some of your hard earned cash; I can assure you that it will be put to good use on behalf of those who need it most.

Thanks in advance, Derek/Andy.

"Their name liveth for evermore"

We completed the Belfast Marathon yesterday (07/05/12) in wet and windy conditions in 3.43.46 which is a personal best for both of us so we are pleased with that, now it's straight back to our training regime for the Edinburgh Marathon on 27/05/12 and then "the wall" in June!!

I was forced to give up any aspiriations of beating my Belfast time after 20 miles in 25 degree heat in Edinburgh and had to be satisifed with just finishing; so just the wall to come. Bring it on!

Last weekend we completed the Wall Run in a total time of 15.02.25; Saturday was wet and windy however we made good time and arrived at the halfway point in just over 6 hours. After putting up our tent we got showered had some food and rested up for day two. Sunday started off rainy again but soon dried up and eventually the sun came out. Andy developed some fairly bad blisters but after some self treatment at the first checkpoint he was up and running. The event was challenging but we enjoyed taking part and supporting the WGAA. To everyone who has donated so far we sincerely thank you.

 

We are now looking for further similar events to take part in and plan to run the Dublin marathon at the end of October 2012.