Hannah Fitzpatrick
Hannah runs the London Marathon
Fundraising for UNICEF UK
Story
UPDATE!
I was meant to run the London Marathon in April 2020, but unfortunately that didn't happen. The October rescheduled marathon was also cancelled and I have now been given a new date - April 2022 (by which point I'll have been training for 2.5 years!)
In the meantime, I've done the VIRTUAL London marathon on 4th October 2020! I walked/ran it, joined by people for socially distanced legs. It took me 7 hours and thankfully I managed to dodge the rain, although I had very sore feet by the end. I am still fundraising, and now I've got a new date would love to raise £3000 for Unicef. It would mean the world if you could part with £5 to help save lives.
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On 12th September 2019, I received the most terrifying/exciting phone call ever - I have been chosen to run the London Marathon for Unicef! I'm one of only 30 runners out of their charity pool of 300+, and so honoured and delighted to have been picked. I'm really passionate about the literally lifesaving work that Unicef do, and have done lots of work with the charity through my role at school. They are such an amazing cause to be representing.
Quite simply, this is going to be the biggest challenge of my life. I've only been running for a couple of years, and have never attempted anything like this before. In addition to training, I have to raise £2000 in the next six months, including £1000 by New Year's Eve 2019! This is a marathon task in itself, and I need all the help I can get. Please spare a few pennies (or pounds, preferably!) to help this incredible cause.
Hannah x
Why Unicef?
Every day, millions of children and young people are facing violence, disease and hunger. This is a crisis on a global scale that it far too easy to forget. It is happening. Now.
It is too easy to be complacent. I’ve been fortunate to lead a comfortable, healthy life. I’ve had a good education, and grew up in a safe place surrounded by people I love, unlike millions of children in the chaos of war and poverty.
Today, thousands of children will die from diseases that are easy to prevent. Thousands more will die because they don’t have the food they need to live and grow. And yet more will experience unspeakable violence. 50 million children have been uprooted from their homes and many are facing a freezing winter, often in a refugee camp or separated from their families. We have started to forget that refugees are human, and that refugee children are children first and foremost.
Unicef ensures more of the world’s children are vaccinated, educated and protected than any other organisation. They keep children safe by providing vaccines against deadly diseases and by promoting safe hygiene in communities around the world. They are the world’s largest supplier of emergency life-saving food for children, and campaign tirelessly to end violence against children.
I am lucky enough to work in a Unicef Rights Respecting school, where we have embedded children’s rights at the heart of our ethos. We teach our children about their rights, and encourage them to seek out injustices and make the world a better place for everyone. The Rights Respecting Award has transformed our school, and opened my eyes to the horrific experiences of children around the world, and the vital work of Unicef in combatting this.
No matter where they come from or where they’re going, all children deserve love, a safe home and hope for a happy future.
By running, I will be able to help Unicef continue their vital work, helping to build a safer, healthier and happier world for children everywhere. My £2,000 in sponsorship could protect over 16,000 children from the crippling effects of polio.
What will your donation go toward?
£6 - provide rehydration salts to prevent 15 children from dying of diarrhoea
£8 - 400 pencils for a school, or a good quality football for a group of children in a refugee camp to play with
£12 - warm hats, gloves and scarves for 4 children in the harsh Syrian winter
£13.50 - school supplies and backpacks for 5 children
£16 - equip a health worker with a vaccine cold box to protect children against polio, whooping cough and measles
£25 - help a midwife to safely deliver 12 babies
£27 - provide over 600 children with clean water
£55 - train a health worker to provide mothers and children with nutritional and anti-malarial advice
£160 - school in a box to allow at least 40 children to continue learning in an emergency or war zone
£250 - protects over 2,000 children from the crippling effects of polio
£1500 - equip a midwife with all the equipment they need to safely deliver babies
£2000 - protect 16,000 children from polio
You can also donate to the Unicef UK London Marathon Team as a whole - all donations will go directly to Unicef UK. For more information, please visit www.unicef.org.uk.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
