Training Consultant, Russell Williams, takes on Bath Half for Jessie May
In March 2008, Donor Strategy Training Consultant, Russell Williams, ran the Bath Half Marathon for the Jessie May Trust. He raised around £340 and completed the run is just under 2 hours.
Russell’s review and his reasons for running:
On my first visit to Jessie May I was asked to wait in the reception area. There was a picture of a young man on the wall. Below his name it said ‘born 1979’ and then the year that he passed away. I still remember being hit by the fact that he would have been the same age as me and yet his life was cut short. It really brought home how lucky I was to be fit and healthy and also the amazing work that everyone at the Jessie May Trust does to help families and children in such difficult times.
During the day of database training with the Jessie May team I really felt a sense that they were all so passionate about their work and they really made me feel welcome. After the day I couldn’t get the image of the young man who passed away out of my head and I realized that I should use my good health to help raise money for Jessie May in any way I could. On the next visit there I offered to enter the Bath Half Marathon and again the team made me feel so welcome and were so grateful for my offer. They obviously are good at fundraising because before I even left the office I had all the forms and documents I needed to get me started!
A few weeks of training made sure I was ready for the day and even though it was cold and miserable I was still cheered on by Jane Atkinson from Jessie May who had made the effort to support all her runners. I completed the run in just under 2 hours and the sense of achievement was overwhelming. As I ran towards the finish line the image of the young man came back to me and I really had to fight back the tears when completing the run.
I feel extremely lucky to be working with clients that actually make a difference to the life’s of others and I will definitely continue to support Jessie May in the future.