Thank you for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.  I am running the Manchester and London Marathons this year, my first marathons when I will have turned 57, and am supporting Clic Sargent.  This is how it came about:

I have not had cancer, but as a young man I was seriously ill with an enlarged thyroid, that left me severely emaciated and with a resting pulse over twice normal.  It could have caused permanent damage if it had not been treated.  With the support of my family, I was able to overcome this successfully, having surgery at the Churchill in Oxford, and now take permanent thyroid supplement.  This has led me to want to support young people and their families when facing serious illness, particularly cancer.  

October 2019, an over-50s health check told me I was overweight and my cholesterol too high.  I am now much lighter and live a completely different lifestyle.  This started with a radical change to my diet, and then I started to row at the Pengwern Club in Shrewsbury (having rowed when a student), and more importantly to run outside.  To my surprise, I found that I really enjoyed it, and that I could run at distance, leading to my first race - the Manchester Half-Marathon in October on behalf of the Christie Hospital.  I am now stepping up to the full distance, and will be running Manchester on 5 April, London three weeks later, and Liverpool in late May (if I can still move by then!).  Manchester is my home city where I went to both the Grammar School and the University, so to run my first Marathon there will be very special!  And then to run London will be amazing.  But more importantly, I am running to help Clic Sargent help children and their families afflicted by cancer.

I have known more than one person with cancer, some have survived, others have now gone, while some are continuing to face the challenge.  They will be in my mind when I run.  I have a very ambitious funding target.  Please help me to meet this!  To run in Manchester and London (and Liverpool if still standing) will be amazing, but to help children and their families will be far more important!