My uncle and godfather, Mark, suffered a mild heart attack in February 2023. Then, in May 2024, he had another that severely damaged his heart. He was transferred to Harefield Hospital, where, after countless tests and scans, his Christmas Day “gift” was to be placed on the waiting list for a heart transplant.

The mental stress and anxiety Uncle Mark endured while waiting was immense. Time and again he prepared himself for surgery, only to be told that the available heart wasn’t suitable. This happened three times. Each setback was agonising. Finally, in February 2025, his consultant delivered the news we had been desperately hoping for: there was a heart, and it was a match.

The operation was a huge success. Today, Uncle Mark is living his best life, with a renewed positivity and a deep appreciation for every single day.

Uncle Mark is incredibly special to me, a constant presence in my life and a source of strength and inspiration. What carried him, and all of us, through those months was the extraordinary care of the hospital staff and the Harefield Healing Garden.

The garden became Uncle Mark’s sanctuary, a place of calm, reflection, and restoration while he anxiously waited for his new heart. He even celebrated his 64th birthday there. During those long, uncertain days, family and friends also found quiet refuge in the garden. We sat with Mark on his bench, talking, pausing, catching our breath, and feeling the weight of worry ease, if only for a moment, in a space filled with natural beauty, colour, and peace.

As one family member put it:

“The Healing Garden didn’t just help Mark, it helped us all. It gave us strength when we felt weak with anxiety and apprehension, and renewed hope as we saw how much hope and strength it gave him.”

When I asked Uncle Mark how I could raise money in a way that truly mattered to him, he didn’t hesitate. He wanted me to raise funds for the Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospital Charity.

Our family will never be able to thank the team at Harefield enough for how they treated and saved Uncle Mark's life. One small way I can give back is by running the Rome Marathon in March. Any donation, no matter the size, will help ensure that patients at Harefield Hospital, and the people who love them, can continue to experience the incredible care they receive and enjoy the Healing Garden as a haven of calm, comfort, and hope when they need it most.