Louise Teager, Adeline Law, Shelley Vardy, Leanne Evans, Aja Cortizo, Cherree Quarrington and Laura Martin are all running this 10km along with myself Claire Cridland, to raise money for ECHO. Thank you so much for joining me in this run, it means alot!

The reason behind running for this charity, is in my story below.

"In July 2010 our world fell apart when we were told our unborn child had a severe heart defect called Pulmonary Atresia with VSD and may not survive his first few hours of life or his first heart operation. From the very beginning of our journey we were supported by the charity ECHO and ever since our son was born we have tried to give something back.

Oliver was born on 13th November 2010 at 6.05pm at St Thomas' Hospital. Almost as soon as we'd said hello to him, we had to say goodbye, for him to be taken for his first heart operation on 16th November at Evelina Childrens Hospital, at just 3 days old. His operation was a great success and we couldnt believe it when we were home 1 week later.

Olivers first 6 months were pretty tough and we had a very scary time. Hospital admissions for bronchiolitis and pneumonia, chicken pox, and even just normal coughs and colds had us worrying for his life on more than one occasion. I spent many hours chatting with mums I had met through ECHO's message board and website and they helped me keep going and kept me strong for my little boy.

Oliver had an MRI at the hospital in May 2011, and we stayed in accommodation at the hospital funded by ECHO.

The result of the MRI saw Oliver back at the Evelina in July 2011 for his open heart surgery to give him a full heart repair, at just over 7 months of age. The heart surgery was a success but a further operation was required to put a stent in a very narrow artery. He went back in for his next operation 6 weeks later and this passed without a hitch.

Oliver's 1st birthday was a very big deal for us and a milestone we never dared to hope he'd reach. I in particular struggled over this period, reliving events and again talked a great deal to my ECHO 'family' who understood where I was coming from.

Oliver's 2nd winter was quite harsh, many little ones struggle their 1st winter after open heart surgery and we found ourselves back in intensive care when Oliver got pneumonia in February 2012.

I have had so much help and support along the way from ECHO and there are many families who still need this support. Many families are in hospital for a huge amount of time. Many families arrive at the hospital unexpectedly if a child is very ill or has only suddenly been diagnosed with a condition. These families need accommodation if there is none available in intensive care, they are given packs with essentials like toothbrushes, toothpaste and shower gel. Families who have had heart conditions diagnosed in pregnancy can attend an antenatal day funded by ECHO. The list goes on and on, and this is why any amount of money raised could help so many people.

We are very lucky that Oliver has grown into a confident, happy, beautiful and strong little boy. I still look at him in complete wonder and am so very lucky to have him. He is just like any other 2 year old. He runs around at soft play, climbs, jumps off things, and is just full of life. And a bit of a daredevil which I am very concerned about for the future!

Oliver will need further surgery. At some point another catheter procedure to balloon the stent in the artery and as a teenager he will need open heart surgery again to replace his pulmonary artery and I know I will have full support throughout his journey.

I would like to thank you for reading my story and I would also like to thank my friends who have decided to join me on this fundraising event. Thank you, Claire Cridland x"

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