Hastings residents to run LondonMarathon for '˜great' local charity

Michelle Black, Mick Bacon and Sue Alabaster are running the 26.2 mile London Marathon to raise funds for The Sara Lee Trust. They have all pledged to raise to £1,750 each to help the charity continue to provide essential care and support services to local people living with cancer and other life threatening illnesses.

Michelle, Mick and Sue all have their own personal reasons for taking the challenge.

Michelle says she is running the marathon in memory of her parents Teresa and Scott Black, whom she recently lost to cancer. “The Sara Lee Trust has been such a support to my sister Alison and myself throughout mum and dad’s illnesses and after their deaths,” she said. “I wanted to give something back.” This is Michelle’s second London Marathon run in aid of the Trust; she last ran in April 2013 and raised £4,349.

Mick started running 10 years ago (aged 44) to keep fit and says the London Marathon is a big personal challenge. “We are all affected by serious or life threatening illnesses at some point in our lives. In 1980, my brother Martin died of leukaemia; he was 24. At the time my family didn’t have anyone to turn to for support. It would have been a real help to contact an organisation such as The Sara Lee Trust – they are a great local charity, helping people across the Hastings and Rother area. This is why I am raising money for them.”

Sue says she’s always thought it would be a wonderful experience to take part in the London Marathon. “This year I decided was the year to get off the sofa, up my game, raise some money for a local charity that was close to my heart and run London. I was so very pleased, excited and slightly scared that the Sara Lee Trust trusted me with one of their charity places. The moment I opened the email saying I was running London, it all got very real. I cannot wait until to experience the atmosphere firsthand. I think it is going to be a very emotional day both physically and mentally.”

Anyone who would like to sponsor Michelle, Mick, or Sue via their JustGiving page or to find out more, visit the Trust’s website at: www.saraleetrust.org

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