Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. 

The short version of my story:
Every day, 619 children and young people from across the UK arrive at Great Ormond Street Hospital(GOSH). Every day, doctors and nurses battle the most complex illnesses, and the brightest minds come together to achieve pioneering medical breakthroughs. Every day is a chance for us to make a difference and GOSH depends on the charitable support of people like you and me.

I've taken up the challenge to make a difference and I am helping to raise funds for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity by running the Royal Parks Half Marathon on Oct 10th 2021 but I know this wouldn't be possible without your help so any amount of donations are welcome and much appreciated. Thank you!

My little personal story on how I ended up signing up to this (by my own will!):
Two years ago if you happened to ask me if I would ever run a 10km event, let alone a half marathon, my immediate answer would be a confident, loud and resounding 'No chance'. 

Then the pandemic hit and I was introduced to what is called an 'outdoor run'. I hated it. It was outside my comfort zone of running in the gym on a trusty treadmill where I had my bottle of water within reach and my towel to lick off any sweat that got into my field of vision. Unfortunately, the pandemic showed no sign of an end date and gyms were closed until further notice. 

With the newfound (borderline) obsession of the Strava app, I was forced to get used to outdoor runs - dealing with the (sometimes) sub-zero temperature, unforgivable winds and most of the time depressing, gloomy British weather which takes on a whole different definition when you are trying to find the best window to squeeze in a run during the winter. 

As the seasons changed, my running form improved - longer runs, bigger distances and better pace. Running transitioned from being a form of physical fitness to a state of my mental being. In all honesty, I'm still very much a beginner runner and I'm still overcoming the fear of long distance running (eg. a half marathon!) but when this opportunity came up to run with the LSEG(London Stock Exchange Group a.k.a. the organisation I currently work for) team and for the cause of GOSH, running a half marathon suddenly became a bucket list item! 

Despite the sense of achievements and adrenaline high I get when I smash a personal best or successfully complete a running challenge, I still have a love-hate relationship for running but I cannot deny that it has been an enjoyable sport I did not predict I would pick up. I've still got a long way to go but I would appreciate any love, encouragement and donations as your support to help me make it across that finish line! :) 

Thank you for reading whichever version you decided to go with.

The link below provides you with more information about this event.
Home (royalparkshalf.com)

You can also read more about GOSH and have a view of the wider LSEG team on our TicketAid page.

Have a blessed day wherever you are, whatever you're doing, whoever you're with.

Best wishes,
Alexa