On 21st March this year we lost my sister, Catherine, after an incident while riding her horse. Catherine died doing her lifelong passion in the rolling countryside where she was most at home.

There are many people that will sorely miss Catherine and none more than her husband and two young children. Together they are facing the most difficult time of their lives and without the one person that could have given them the most love and strength. We will all help in every way we can but we know that at times they will need a little extra support.

I will be running the Hackney Half Marathon on 19th May, with Catherine in my mind and to raise money for Winston’s Wish, a charity that supports bereaved children and young people.

Winston’s Wish in their own words:

Every day across the UK, children and young people lose someone significant to them. The death of someone important can be the most traumatic experience a child or young person will ever face.

Winston’s Wish relies on voluntary charitable donations to support children and their families following the death of a parent, sibling or important person. Since 1992, they have helped tens of thousands of bereaved children and young people and, with your help, can help tens of thousands more during the most difficult time of their lives.

£8 could provide a set of crafts and activities, including all of the materials needed to make a memory jar which serve as a reminder of special memories shared with their loved one.

£12 could enable us to provide one child with a memory box that can be used to store treasured objects, helping them to remember their loved one in a way that is personal to them.

£26 Could cover the cost of an online information session led by a Winston's Wish bereavement support worker.