Thank you so much for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Reality is dawning as I sit here typing this message to you all. I am now officially running the London Marathon 2014, to which the response from most has been "You're crazy!" Well, yes, there is that, but also I wanted a challenge as well as the opportunity to raise money for such a worthy cause as Guide Dogs.

My Great Grandad James was blind. He lived in the Welsh mountains and cooked daily on an open fire - he had the burnt hands to prove it! I have childhood memories of him giving me 2p and saying "Dont spend it all at once". It used to make me giggle, but being so young I had very little concept of how difficult life must have been for him at the time. I now realise how tough it was. He was without the support of a trusted Guide Dog to help him in everyday life, to provide companionship and safety in what must be a very dark and scary world.

Unfortunately his poor vision was passed down through the family with my grandmother and her sister both suffering from Retinitis Pigementosa, an inherited degenerative eye disease that causes severe vision impairment and often blindness.

It is for these special people in my life that I chose to represent Guide Dogs, and it will be these people who'll  be in my thoughts as I run the long gruelling 26.2 miles around London in April.

Please help me support such an amazing charity, and give those who would othewise live in a world of darkness the opportunity to live their lives to the full and experience the freedoms we often take for granted.

I really do appreciate your donations in helping me reach my goal of raising £2,000. I have a great challenge ahead of me and thank you once again for your kindness. Clare xxx

 

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