Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

My mother-in-law, Pat, recently passed away after a three year battle with cancer. Anyone who has had close relatives and friends that have life-limiting conditions will know what a difference it makes to have specialist care, assistance and support, not just for the person with the condition but also for their family and carers.

Pat received wonderful care and support from St Rocco’s, including advice and guidance, making new friends at the Vitality centre, helping her to access support, as well as working their magic during her several stays as an inpatient.

Hospices like St Rocco's receive limited funding from the NHS and need to raise money through fundraising and donations. It costs around £4.2 million each year to run the hospice – which means they need to raise over £10,000 a day just to keep running.

We are extremely grateful to the whole team at St Rocco's who have been wonderful throughout. Although I know I can never repay them for all their help and support, I wanted to do something to help. So, racking my brain for challenges, I've decided to run the Manchester Marathon (my first marathon) to raise much needed funds for the charity. I've run several half marathons before but the elusive marathon always seemed too much of a stretch or too much of a commitment. However this pales into insignificance when compared to the personal challenges fought every day by those with life-limiting conditions and the selfless dedication shown by their carers and staff at St Roccos.

No donation is too small and I'm very grateful for any assistance you can give to this deserving charity (and encouragement for me to keep going with the 16 week training ordeal). Wish me luck!