Hi everyone

 

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page

 

Not long now until the 3^rd October – the date of the Loch Ness Marathon

 

Training and dieting is going pretty well so far, certainly a lot better than my last two, very painful marathons. But 26.2 miles is still a very long way and the satisfaction of running 16 miles in training does not last long when I quickly realise I’ll need to find the energy  for 10 more miles on the day of the marathon!

 

Thanks so much for all the very generous donations and kind messages so far – they are very much appreciated by me and my chosen charity - New Beginnings International. And they are motivating me to get out running more often and for longer when my legs say no!

 

Just to give some background on New Beginnings International who I first came in contact with when I lived in Uganda some years back and have kept in touch with since.

 

New Beginnings International (Scottish Charity, SCO34676)

 

Sarah Donnison visited Uganda in 2002 and saw the enormous need of children, living in the slums and streets, they had no parents, no home, no food, no education, no healthcare and no-one to love and take care of them;….. And So New Beginnings International was set up in 2002 to help these underprivileged children in Uganda.  It is a small charity and is supported by sponsors and donators in the UK.  It currently is looking after 87 children and young people, providing them with their education, health care and personal/scholastic requirements.   Over the last 8 years children have been taken to boarding school.  Here they have all their needs provided for; three meals a day, a bed of their own, safety, security, medicine, education, a hope for the future, clothes, toiletries, and everything else they need for school.

 

New Beginnings has children in Primary school, Secondary school, University, Vocational Colleges and Special Needs Schools.  It is the vision that we provide for these children as we would for our own children and support them until they can support themselves.  This year has seen 13 of our children pass their ‘O’ Levels, 4 pass their ‘A’ Levels, one finish University and one finish their Vocational training and start an apprenticeship.  The children write to their sponsors in the UK and we send their school reports together with photos and newsletters to keep them updated at least once a year.  We have one man working for us in Uganda to support, encourage and provide all these things for the children.

 

We hope to continue to give these children an opportunity of a better life, through an education they could never otherwise of had and through the love of God shown to them, through New Beginnings.  We believe that they will go on in the future to help other children in need in Uganda, as they have been helped.

 

Just to end, some details on JustGiving ... 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.