In December 2014 my friend Andreas Christopheros opened his front door to an unknown man who threw concentrated sulphuric acid in his face in a case of mistaken identity, whilst his wife Pia and son Theo were in the house. The attack has left Andreas blind in one eye, visually impaired in the other, with full facial scarring as well as scars to his arms and torso and with breathing difficulties.

Face Forward Inc is an amazing organisation: their mission is to provide emotional support and reconstructive surgery for those who have been survivors of domestic violence, human trafficking, or any cruel and criminal acts. They flew Andreas to their LA clinic to do some surgeries and help him on his never ending road of recovery. In return he is raising money for Face Forward.  I really want to help him.

Let me tell you a bit about Andreas. Whenever he talks about the attack he calls himself a survivor instead of a victim. That pretty much sums up his fantastic attitude towards life and his meritorious way of dealing with whatever it may bring him. Since that horrendous December evening Andreas devoted his life to campaigning for tougher sentences for people who commit acid attacks. You might have seen him on TV or social media or heard him on the radio as he’s trying to reach every platform possible - and he is doing an incredible job!  I was deeply touched by his story and by seeing how far he’s managed to come. He is truly an inspiration to all of us and I’m not quite sure even Andreas himself realizes how many people he affects on day by day with his exceptional and confident outlook – always facing forward.

I want to help Andreas to raise funds for Face Forward Inc so they can carry on giving the wonderful support they’ve been providing him and other survivors.  I joined him (he's running too!) and a bunch of others  to run the Simplyhealth Great Bristol 10K on the 13^th of May – yes, that’s in 7 weeks!  I’m going to do the hard work for your amusement and will post updates about my last minute training process which I have been neglecting so far with all sorts of excuses… I am asking you to support me and help me in a less exhausting way: by chipping in with a small amount or digging deep in your pocket.  Spread the word and ask your friends too. Every little is much appreciated!

(My goal is £250 but is shown in dollar as it goes straight to Face Forward Inc.  £10=$14)

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