About a year ago, in a desperate attempt to get fit, I started some gentle running – the last time I had regarded running as anything other than a form of torture having been some 31 years ago.

This time, much to my surprise, two things happened. First, I started to enjoy it a bit, and second my legs, hips, ankles, knees and groin all stood up to it (well sort of).  I now just need two physios, one osteopath, one urologist, pain killers and an acupuncturist to keep me going with minimal discomfort.

Once I started to be able to run a little further, I felt I needed a challenge to aim for, so I tried to get into the Bupa 10,000m London Race taking place on 27 May 2012.  Entry was full, however I came across a very small charity supporting homeless children in the Ukraine, which had just two places in the race and one was still available.  I promised to raise some funds for the children and they allowed me to take the place.

So now, the pressure is on.  I have to train regularly and then run as fast as I can and hope to raise as much money as I can for the children of Odessa.  With Tikva being a small specialist charity, every pound I raise will have a direct impact for them.

How You Can Help 
All I am relying on you for is to make a small donation of any amount at all no matter the size; it will be most welcome and motivating for me!  I fully appreciate that I am not running a marathon, climbing a mountain or cycling non-stop to Scotland, but I do hope the bit of effort I am putting in will encourage you to make a small donation just to spur me on that bit further and faster.

Your support will not only help homeless children of Odessa, it will also:

·        *  Ensure that I train regularly in the lead up to the race (just think of the pain your support will regularly put me through).

·       *  Motivate me to run the whole race in under 1 hour (in fact my target is 50-55 minutes and at the moment I cannot run further than about 6.5km in 45 minutes, so I have a way to go still).

Thank you for at least reading this far, the last thing to do is make a small donation to show your support.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure.  They’ll send your money directly to British Friend of Tikva Odessa and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed.

To Donate By Text Message
You can now even donate via Text Message (with all the money going to the charity) via my own personal text reference.  Just text CHAS55 and the amount (£1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 10) to 70070 and the money goes direct to the charity. (eg CHAS55 £5 to 70070). 

I intend to keep you up to date with occasional news and progress online (through Facebook, Twitter (just click or follow @CAMarks1), and email).