Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

This is very much a personal challenge, nothing more and as my half century is looming I thought if there is ever a time, it's now.. 

I'm not a natural runner and since doing the couch to 5k 2 yrs ago I have only been  running to keep fit a couple of times a week, running no more than 5 miles. So I thought how do I get further... hmmm maybe a little extreme but I entered the ballot last May for the London marathon and when I got the letter to say I had got a place in October last year I was truly shocked and thought crikey you have to do it now!

The reason I have chosen RAiISE is because the daughter of one of my close friends was diagnosed with Lupus during an important time in her teens. She suffered terribly at school because nobody understood what she was going through or how to help her deal with it, it was such an important stage in her life. Only the strength of Sophie and the love and support of her family and sheer will to find out more about the illness did they get through those dark days.

Now Sophie has founded RAiISE and is committed to transforming the experience of young people with invisible illnesses in schools and education.

The money raised will help fund the creation of support packs for schools. The packs which have been co-designed with young people, families, teachers and healthcare professionals. They are aimed to provide teachers with practical help, support and training to better understand the specific needs for young people living with illnesses such as lupus, juvenile arthritis, epilepsy, diabetes, chronic heart conditions, mental health issues and Kidney disease

RAiISE is a very small and relatively new charity but with your help and support, I know that Sophie and the team will work tirelessly to achieve what they have set out to do.

On behalf of myself and RAiSE:

Thank  you for taking the time to read this page and if you can afford a small donation then an even bigger THANK YOU.xxx

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. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.