I am delighted to be running London Marathon in aid of KEMP, because, as a local person, I have always been aware of the good it does. During my Nurse Training in the early 1990’s I had a placement at KEMP and really enjoyed it. I recently attended a volunteer day with a view to working for Kemp and was so impressed by how lovely and kind the staff all were. I’ve sadly lost a few friends to cancer, one of whom attended Kemp. It will be so rewarding to raise money for a local well deserving establishment.

I started running again just over a year ago. Sadly my oldest friend Emma passed away in February 2024 following a 2-year battle with cancer. Emma had always kept herself fit and healthy so her diagnosis was a huge shock. I had not kept myself healthy and had become resigned to being overweight following a thyroid ablation for Graves Disease. I was diagnosed with this in 2015 and following medication and radioactive iodine I gained 6 stone. Seeing what was happening to Emma gave me a wake up call and made me realise that I was fortunate in that I could get my health back. Emma was a real inspiration as she was still exercising and climbing mountains throughout her illness. Out of respect for Emma I promised her I would get myself fit and healthy.

In January 2024 I joined SlimmingWorld and to date have lost over 5 stone (and still have 2 more to lose). In April 2024 I started my running journey using the Couch to 5k app. I then went on to run in four Race For Life 5k events and a 5k Santa run for Kemp last year. I also ran in three 10k distance events last year and have ran a 10k event every month of 2025. Additional to this I ran Birmingham Half Marathon in May, a Half Marathon at Dorney Lake in July and have three more Half Marathons booked this year.

This is a huge challenge for me so any donations to KEMP to support this challenge will be greatly appreciated thank you.