Hi and thanks for visiting my just giving page!

Whilst this marathon is a personal challenge for me, is not about me, how fast I can run or how well I do.  I think when you read what my fantastic friend Dani goes through with her family (She has 2 other children aswell, one the same age as Tionie, nearly 3) you will appreciate why I have chosen the charity that I have.

2 and a half years ago, when she was just 5, Laila was diagnosed with Type-1 Diabetes. We don't know how she got it, only that a virus caused her body to kill the cells in her pancreas, making it unable to produce insulin for itself.

Laila has to endure at least 4 blood tests and at least 4 insulin injections a day. We have to weigh everything she eats, calculate the carbohydrate content and figure out how much insulin to give. Many factors are taken into account other than what she eats, the weather, illness and activity all play a part. As a parent it is a 24 hr a day struggle to keep ahead of the game, to keep her blood sugars stable, knowing that a wrong move could result in a hypo (low blood sugar), which in turn could lead to a coma.

We were lucky however, despite the initial shock, she is happy and healthy. She was diagnosed quickly, we were only in hospital for one night. Others aren't so lucky, many children becoming very ill, their blood becoming acidic, and in some cases children die before what should be a very simple test, and diagnosis. JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) exist to find a cure for Type-1 and it's complications, which will occur later in life if blood sugars are not kept reasonably steady.

Please help them and sponsor my amazing friend Emma on her marathon, and donate to a fantastic charity who will eventually be able to help children like Laila. Thank you.

So there we are, nothing more to be said other than thank you for your donation, dig deep and be safe in the knowledge that his charity will help the lives of real people.

Mwah

Emma x