On 16 August last year, whilst on holiday with my family, I heard from one of my favourite people on this planet that she had finally gone into labour, nine days after her due date.  Suffice to say, we were so excited that Jackie and Tony's little boy would finally be here.  We didn't yet know his name but we had talked for what felt like an eternity about him arriving and we knew he'd be a beauty....

The next day, I awoke to a text message from Tony with heartbreaking news that baby Jacob Ethan's heart had stopped beating during labour and he was no longer with us.  Jackie and Tony's world came crashing down around them and there was nothing anyone could do apart from to offer love, support and a shoulder to cry on. 

I was completely shocked to learn that stillbirth continues to affect 1 in 200 pregnancies in the UK, in context that equates to 3600 babies per year.  Perhaps even more devastatingly I found this common and tragic occurrence is scarcely talked about and despite warnings around SIDS, Down's syndrome and other pre-natal conditions, stillbirth is rarely mentioned to expectant mothers. 

Ghie and I are therefore running our first marathon, actually our first ever race, in Jacob's memory.  We hope to raise money to contribute to research to bring down the rates of stillbirth.

We'd be so grateful for any contribution, there is no amount too small and we promise to carry on training hard for this tough physical test.

G&R xxx