Hello and thank you for visiting my fund raising page!

I’m running the Edinburgh Marathon on the 29^th May 2016 for the Freedom from Fistula Foundation.  

Training is getting really tough but knowing that I am going to be raising money for such a worthwhile cause is keeping me going.

Some detail on this issue and the wonderful life changing work that the Foundation is doing below:

Today an estimated 2 million women in Africa are suffering from obstetric fistula caused by prolonged, obstructed childbirth and lack of access to maternity care. Women suffering from obstructed labour often struggle until the baby dies.  During this agonising process loss of circulation causes tissue to die, leaving large gaps between the birth canal and bladder or rectum, causing incontinence. Most women and girls suffering with obstetric fistula are ostracised by their
families and communities as they smell and are constantly wet, leaving them to live as outcasts.

The Foundation's vision is to help eradicate obstetric fistula and for women and girls in Africa to have access to healthcare during pregnancy and childbirth. The Foundation provides medical infrastructure (including
equipment and supplies), training surgeons to repair obstetric fistulas, and training midwives in the highest possible standards of maternal healthcare. In addition to providing physical care and healing, they also provide education and empowerment programs focusing on imparting basic skills (reading, writing and numeracy), as well as a range of vocational skills, including sewing and craftwork.

100% of donations go directly to projects because all administration costs are borne by The Gloag Foundation. This means that all donations are applied directly to where they are needed most on the front line, treating the poorest of the poor in Africa.