On Sunday 13th October 2024, a group of A-level students from a local school ran the Royal Parks Half Marathon in memory of their much-loved friend, who very sadly passed away last year. Their friend had a connection to the Neonatal Unit at St George’s and so they felt it would be very fitting to raise money for First Touch.
Eva, Lola, Mabel and Betsy completed the course in very impressive times and managed to raise over £5,000 for First Touch, which will make a huge difference in supporting our numerous family welfare projects. A special plaque commemorating their friend will be placed on the unit.
After the race, the team told us: “We’re so pleased we’ve managed to raise so much for First Touch and hope it makes a difference. The charity has come to mean a lot to us and seeing the ward has definitely helped us know why what you guys do is so important, so we would be would be more than happy if our funds could go to things like transport for parents……We were all saying today how sad we are that it’s all over but definitely want to do another half or even a full marathon sometime in the future, and hopefully work with you again! We hope we’ve made even a small difference, and we send everyone and all the babies on the ward all our best wishes.”
We cannot thank the team enough for their brilliant efforts and a special mention goes to Lola, who ran the race on her 18th birthday!