Two incredible runners undertake the Virgin Money London Marathon for Jigsaw (South East)
We are honoured to announce that two incredible runners will be taking part in the Virgin Money London Marathon on 3 September 2021 to raise funds for Jigsaw (South East).
Sophie Bewley, Fundraising Co-Ordinator at Jigsaw (South East) comments; “We are so fortunate that these two incredible runners are taking on their own personal challenges to raise funds for Jigsaw. We are a small charity with a big job to do and we rely on fundraising from our local community in Sussex and Surrey to support children and young people through the loss of a loved one.”
Kathy Binning is running in memory of her twin sister, Ceridwen and raising funds for Jigsaw to say thank you for the support the charity provided to her nephews and brother in law, following Ceri’s death last year after a long battle against cancer.
Ceri and Kathy
Kathy explains; “When Ceri learnt that she was dealing with a terminal diagnosis, she wanted to set up a support infrastructure to help her family to cope in the difficult times ahead, both in preparing the boys for the loss of their mum but also to continue to help them after she passed away.
The support that Jigsaw provided to Gary and my two nephews, Austin and Leo, was an incredible help. It wasn’t just the preparing for loss sessions they attended but also the days out that they had with families in the same position as them, allowing them to talk about their grief and know there were other people going through what they were going through.
We set up an in memory page to honour Ceri in 2020 and raised over £3,800 for Jigsaw as well as doing the 2.6 challenge as a family. This personal challenge to complete the London Marathon is a chance for me to continue that legacy of support. I had aimed to raise £500 but have already smashed the £1,000 mark which I am delighted about. With every pound donated and with every mile I run this weekend, I will be thinking about Ceri and future families who will benefit from the support of the team at Jigsaw too.”
Ria Beal
Ria Beal, a local runner from the East Grinstead area, was Jigsaw’s first dedicated Marathon place runner appointed in 2020 and, in addition to running the virtual London Marathon for us in 2020, she is now back to complete the actual course for us too.
Ria adds; “I am so thrilled to be finally able to run the London Marathon route in aid of Jigsaw. 2020 was a tricky year for us all and whilst I was very happy to complete the Virtual Marathon, I am incredibly excited to be able to now complete the course alongside the 50,000+ other runners. I set myself a goal to raise £2,000 and I am extremely close to hitting it. I am sure by race day I will have smashed the goal! It’s been amazing to support Jigsaw so that they can continue providing their services to local families at their darkest times.”
