Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. I’m running 2,500 miles in 2023 to raise funds for Diabetes UK.

It has been a year like no other for me, for a number of reasons. I lead a wonderful organisation full of People who make sure a difference in the lives of our Customers every day. We don’t always get everything right first time for our Customers (or sometimes second time), but we are trying to. And I have felt throughout this year that we are getting better in almost every single way. The laser focus we have on our service is having a powerful impact, we have a strong trajectory, and absolutely the right values and belief. But, as we know, getting better is not the same thing as always being good. So, while we have a ways to go, helping to get us on the right path with all the headwinds we’re continuing to face has meant, without a doubt, this has been the most demanding, exhausting, and fulfilling year of my professional life.

As is often the way though when one thing is going well you get reminded that life is full of ups and downs. My down this year was the devastating news that my Dad had a tumour in his oesophagus and would need full treatment. He has gone through radiotherapy and chemotherapy followed by an operation to build a new oesophagus using half his stomach. He never complained, he never felt sorry for himself, and he never stopped going forward. He is at home recovering now and recently has been able to start eating solid food. He has 18 months of immunotherapy, but it seems the cancer is gone. He isn’t 100% his old self but I wouldn’t bet against him.

I had so much support from my Chairman, our Board of Directors, my Exec team, and just about anyone you can name at Places for People. The support was so strong that at times I felt guilty. I felt like I needed to remind them that I wasn’t sick. Those closest to me looked after me so well because they knew that I’d try to keep going a million miles an hour. Melissa has been a rock as you would expect. Not easy for her as she has known my father her whole life and he is just as important to her.

Annoyingly as my father has been dealing with Cancer, he has also had to deal with Type 2 diabetes. As I sat with him in the hospital, they were giving him insulin to bring down his blood sugar. My grandmother was also Type 2. It’s a family thing at this point. Fat in your organs is normally the problem but my father has never been overweight. He has always weighed 155 pounds or about 11 stone. He dipped down to 9 stone during his illness, but the Type 2 never let up.

It is well known that I have been obese in my life and that I found a way to lose the weight and have now kept it off for over six years. My method is a combination of diet and exercise. I do blame myself for my diabetes which requires a tablet each day. I also know that my path was probably already set like my father’s. I just pulled my issues forward.

All of that said I’d like to raise a bit of money for diabetes research because I know that we are getting closer to being able to put it into remission, and every little bit of help gets us a step along the way. I set myself a chunky challenge this year of running 2,500 miles. I need to run 7 miles a day for the rest of December to hit my goal. I’d love it if you could give me a bit of motivation and help cure the silent killer that is Type 2 diabetes by supporting Diabetes UK.