When I watched the Marathon this year I felt so inspired by the challenge that so many runners had achieved, whilst raising much needed funds for so many incredible charities. It got me thinking of the daily challenges my two little men meet every single day of their lives, and how bravely they overcome and achieve them. I am in awe and so incredibly proud of what my Charlie and Olly have accomplished, and with the most kindest and purest of hearts. So I decided that I too wanted to step out of my comfort zone and try to achieve the challenge of running the 2024 London Marathon. I reached out to family to see whether anyone would be crazy enough to embark on this journey with me, and without a seconds hesitation my amazing cousin and life long friend, Faye said she was game! Faye used to run around 5 years ago and I’ve never run more than 5k in my life, so we’ve got a lot to learn and a lot of work to do. 

We are both so lucky to be given the opportunity to run by the amazing charity ‘Challengers’, who care children just like my two beautiful boys who are autistic and all other disabilities. When we first realised that Charlie was going down a different journey to other children we were of course scared, worried and overwhelmed as to what the word ‘autism’ meant for him. We soon learnt that there was absolutely nothing to be scared of, and in fact, we had been given the most special little man with the most special superpower, and it was in fact us as parents that needed to learn to be part of his world, as opposed to forcing him to be apart of ours. 

Two years later we welcomed our beautiful second little man, Olly. As he grew we noticed that he was even more behind developmentally, and he too was following the same journey as his older brother. Having had some experience this time around we embraced the path he was following and have fully enjoyed life at the pace our boys take and need. We have challenges of course, but as a family we break them down and overcome them. Together we are a strong, proud, unique family and I wouldn’t change a single thing.They’ve taught me that love needs no words, and even though they can’t speak doesn’t mean they don’t have something to say - we just need to listen with more than our ears! 

Challengers is so close to our hearts as they provide play and leisure activities for disabled children and young people aged 2-18 across the South East, including play schemes at the boys special school. Through their services, disabled children and young people can make friends and try new activities in a fun and fully inclusive environment. 

Sadly too many disabled young people miss out on play every day. There are many barriers stopping disabled children from playing – from physical impairments and a lack of accessible play facilities, to a time, money and support. That’s where Challengers comes in…they remove these barriers by providing truly inclusive play and leisure that everyone can enjoy and join in with, no matter how complex their needs are. Young people can come to Challengers Pre-school, Play and Youth schemes and experience the same fun and friendship as their non-disabled peers, with activities adapted to suit their unique individual needs. They offer play schemes where disabled and non-disabled children can come together to play, have fun and make new friends in a safe space - including offering activities during the school holidays at Charlie and Olly’s special school. 

Challengers not only benefits the children and young people that attend their services but also has a monumental impact on their families. Parents often describe Challengers as a 'lifeline'. 

Our individual pledge is to raise a minimum of £1,999 each, excluding gift aid. We know this is a big sum of money to raise, so in the upcoming months we will do our upmost to share our training journey along with details of fundraising events we will be hosting.

We appreciate money is tight for everyone at the moment, so any donation made is hugely appreciated and we thank you! 

Lots love, Lauren & Faye xx