The What

On May 16th, a group of teaching staff at the International School of Moscow will be running the Moscow Half Marathon and the Moscow 5km to show our support to Melisa.

We would love you to take part on the day, donate the cost of a coffee or ice cream then head out and put some miles in, either on your own or as a family. You might be thinking, a half marathon is too much... every mile walked, jogged or run covered is an extra mile to our overall total (if you would prefer to just donate, your generosity is equally appreciated).

The How

Click the link below and join our Strava group, where your miles will be added to those of people from all over the world. Then, on May 16th, head outside for a walk, jog or run using the Strava App (no need to pay for the subscription... just use the free version!). All miles will be automatically added to this group, so we can really see how many half marathons we can do together.

Join us in the Strava Group today

Go that extra mile...

If you would like to support, even more, share our goal with your friends and family; encourage them to sponsor you for your activity. Every pound, euro or dollar we raise will make a huge difference to Melisa's life.

The Why

The story so far, in 2017, Year 12 student Melisa Erdem was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, battling for her life in the intensive care unit of an Istanbul hospital. Happily, Melisa was released from intensive care. However, living with this condition means that Melisa will be tied to hospitals for the rest of her life.

In the September of 2017, Melisa’s condition suddenly worsened. She underwent twelve hours of surgery, during which her heart stopped twice, for more than ten minutes. Her family were very close to losing her that day, but thanks to the hospital staff, Melisa's life was saved.

The only solution in order for Melisa to live a normal life is for her to have a heart transplant. But the challenge she faces follows news of an infection, which doctors are advising for the operation to take place within the next six months.

Operations such as this are long, complicated and extremely expensive, costing 1,100,000 euros in total. With approximately 600,000 Euros (£500,080) still needed within the next 5 months. With your support, we are aiming to raise £5,500, which covers a little over 1% of the total remaining amount.

Where will the money go?

The donation you make will go directly to her family and help pay towards the procedure.

Keeping safe: COVID-19

On the day, we will be wearing masks before and after the race as well as doing our best to maintain social distancing during the race. We will be run as individuals, rather than as a group.

For those who will be joining us on the day, please do everything you can in order to stay safe. Please, respect and follow your government guidance, as well as ensuring that you follow all road safety.