Meet our 2019 London Marathon Runners

This year we have 15 runners taking part in the 2019 London Marathon all running in aid of SRUK. This is the largest amount of runners SRUK has ever had and we couldn't be more honored and excited. We would like to introduce you to some of our runners and give a bit of information about what inspired them to take part in the Marathon.

Paul and Jack Kelly

A father and son duo taking on the London Marathon this year in support of Janine their wife and mother, respectively.

When speaking about why he decided to apply to run in the marathon Paul said

' I am running the London Marathon for my wife Janine who has lived with scleroderma for more than ten years but never complains and gets on with life as best as she can even though she is sometimes in extreme pain and people around her, including me, often forget that she suffers from this debilitating condition because she looks fine on the outside. Thinking of Janine is what inspires me to keep going on the long runs when it starts to get tough and it feels like I'm a long, long way from home. She walked the Thames Path for SRUK with our son Jack in 2016 so I am really excited to be running the marathon (with Jack, well, probably not literally!) to raise money for SRUK so they can continue to fund research and improve the lives of people with scleroderma and Raynaud's.'

You can see Paul and Jack's amazing fundraising page here

Ross

This will be Ross' first marathon, when speaking about why he decided to take on the challenge he said

'I decided to run the marathon in memory of my wonderful mother in law, Maxine who sadly passed away from Scleroderma in November 2010 aged just 53 years. Maxine was diagnosed with scleroderma & deteriorated very quickly. As a family, we had never heard of scleroderma & received very little information or support from our local hospital. I would like to support this amazing charity & raise awareness for others.'

You can see Ross' amazing fundraising page here

Kate

When asked why she wanted to take part this year in the London Marathon she said

'I will be running the London Marathon in memory of my late nan, Sue Barnes.
Up until her death in 2008, Nan suffered from Scleraderma. I watched her live her life to the full despite this restricting and painful condition.
She would have done anything to support us; I am doing this both to raise awareness and in memory of my amazing nan.'

You can see Kate's amazing fundraising page here

Hannah

Hannah decided to take on the challenge of the London Marathon this year and when asked why she said

'The loss of my Nanny in February 2018 gave me that last little push I needed to commit and do it this year. I hope taking part will raise awareness of Scleroderma & Raynaud's and just how much these conditions can have an impact on people's lives. '

You can see Hannah's amazing fundraising page here


Marcus

Marcus received a ballot place in this years London Marathon and decided to run it in aid of SRUK, when asked why he said

'This year is the 10th anniversary of the passing of my wonderful mother, who was taken away from us far too soon. My mother, Olga, suffered with Scleroderma. I took this loss very badly and found myself in a dark place. Running has given me focus and helped me to deal with the bereavement and while I still miss my mum, I know that she is now at peace and not in pain. So with this in mind, I am going to run this race in my mother's memory and at the same time try and raise some money for the Scleroderma and Raynaud's UK (SRUK) who gave us support and advice through the tough times.'

You can see Marcus' amazing fundraising page here

Max

Max is taking part in this years Marathon and other actviities to show support for his sister Kate who was recently diagnosed with Scleroderma.

You can see Max's amazing fundraising page here

Jane

When asked why Jane applied to run the London Marathon for SRUK Jane said

'In 2016 my beautiful sister started to experience severe pain in her hands. After many investigations and possible diagnosis' including Carpal Tunnel, Multiple Sclerosis, Reactive Arthritis, on the 18th May 2017 a diagnosis of Scleroderma was made and a referral to the Royal Free Hospital where a diagnosis of Diffuse Scleroderma was confirmed.
Paula was 45 with two children aged 9 and 11 when diagnosed Paula currently has to take multiple medications and go to hospital regularly for week long Iloprost infusions to combat the thickening of the blood vessels.

Paula, despite pain and exhaustion takes part in as many research trials as she can in the hope of finding treatments to manage and ultimately find a cure to help overcome this debilitating disease. This is my small part in trying to raise funds and awareness to combat this disease for both her and other sufferers.'

You can see Jane's amazing fundraising page here

Ewa

When asked why she decided to apply to run for SRUK and undertake the huge task of training for the London Marathon and running 26.2 miles Ewa said

'I had the honour of meeting Mandy, Mike, Doris, Jess, Christina, Susan, Maria, their families and friends – who have all been affected by scleroderma. They are the most inspirational people I have ever met. They will be my motivation and will give me strength through every mile of my training. I will be running the London Marathon to raise funds for Scleroderma and Raynaud's UK, to help find a cure and support people affected by these conditions.'

You can see Ewa's amazing fundraising page here

Sharon

Sharon received a place in the Ballot for this years London Marathon and got in contact about running to fundraising and raise awarneess for SRUK, we were thrilled. When asked why she had decided to run for SRUK she said

'I am running this year's marathon in memory of my cousin, Helen. Helen was more like my bigger sister and she lived with Scleroderma for over 10 years before sadly passing away last June. When I tell people what she had, the usual response is "never heard of it" and hopefully running and fundraising for the London Marathon will raise awareness of this rare, debilitating illness.
This will be my third marathon and I will miss her smile and hug at the finishing line.'

You can see Sharon's amazing fundraising page here

James

James will be taking part in his 4th London Marathon and ran Manchester Marathon earlier this year. James received a Good for Age place in this year's London Marathon and decided to run in aid of SRUK. James said:

'Earlier this year my wife's Uncle passed away having lost his battle with Scleroderma. I am running London Marathon for SRUK to help raise awareness of Scleroderma, support the charity and in memory of my wife's Uncle. This will be my 4th London Marathon and having run Manchester a few weeks ago I decided it was time to finally meet the challenge of my Australian friends – run as Kermit the Frog!'.

You can see James' amazing fundraising page here

Jake

This year Jake will be taking part in his first London Marathon in memory of his Nan Ann Ward who recently passed away after living with Scleroderma.

You can see his amazing fundraising page here

Andrew

I'm running to raise funds and awareness for SRUK as my girlfriend Kate was diagnosed with a rare form of scleroderma last year. Although she's been a little soldier and taken it all in her stride, the treatment has been tough and it's clear that it isn't researched as comprehensively as it could be - SRUK is committed to providing support to those suffering from it and ultimately to finding a cure.”

Check out his amazing fundraising page here

Paul

This year Paul is running the London Marathon to show his support to his friends Julie and James who's young daughter Isla is living with Scleroderma

Have a look at his amazing fundraising page here

Also running the London Marathon for us this year will be Bob who's fundraising page you can see here. We are so grateful for all of our runners and we can't wait to cheer them on this Sunday.

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