A team of four runners raised more than £7,800 for blind and partially sighted people as they took on the mighty 2021 Virgin Money London Marathon.
Steve Holliday, Steve Millington, James Bickerstaff and Ken Mellis all pounded the city’s streets at the weekend, raising a total of £7,873 for sight loss charity Galloway’s.
The first member of Team Galloway’s over the finish line was Steve Holliday, of Morecambe, who completed the race in three hours, 38 minutes.
The 44-year-old father-of-five loved his experience and would recommend people sign up next year to support Galloway’s.
He said: “My son’s grandmother, Pam, works for Galloway’s and she asked me if I would be interested in doing the marathon.
“I enjoy running so this is a personal challenge for me and a chance to raise money for a cause that supports local people.
“As I live in Morecambe, Galloway’s is a bit more personal to me, plus I have heard all about the wonderful things they do from Pam. Galloway’s is also a smaller and less well recognised charity so it is nice to raise money for somewhere different.
“It was tough but I kept in mind the fact that I am doing it to raise money for a charity and I want to inspire my children.
“I am really pleased with my time and the fact that I ran the whole course. I would love to do it again next year.”
The public ballot for the 2022 London Marathon is now open via www.virginmoneylondonmarathon.com/enter/how-to-enter/ballot-entry, with people having until Friday October 8 at 9pm to register interest.
Galloway’s is encouraging people to enter the public ballot and support blind and partially sighted people, by joining their team next year.
The charity also has 11 places for next year’s event.
Charlotte Carnell, Events Coordinator at Galloway’s, which supports blind and partially sighted across Lancashire and Sefton, said: “We are all incredibly proud of all four runners, who have raised such a staggering amount for us. We really appreciate the huge effort they put into training and fundraising for us, especially as there have been several setbacks and uncertainties because of Covid-19.
“We are now getting excited for next year as we have 11 places up for grabs. As we get a lot of enquiries, we recommend you still enter the public ballot and if successful, email me at charlotte.carnell@galloways.org.uk and we and we can get you started on the road to London, as we will support you with your fundraising and training.”