Wendy's heading north for charity

Howard Lake | 27 June 2006 | Newswire

Shepshed’s Wendy Haywood is preparing to enter this year’s BUPA Great North Run, from Newcastle to South Shields on 1 October, in a bid to raise money for Leukaemia CARE – a charity that is close to her heart.
Although the 13.1 miles initially posed a bit of a challenge as, until she started her training, Wendy had no experience of long distance running, she is confident she’ll cross the finish line.
Wendy, who works at the Leicester Customer Service Centre of the Royal Bank of Scotland, said: I’ve been out running regularly to gradually build up my distance and stamina and was really pleased to complete nine miles last week. It has been tough, but I’ve been running with a friend who is entering the Race for Life event and also with my friend Rachel Goodwin who is the Practice Nurse at Shepshed Health Centre, so we’ve kept each other going and rather than dreading the training sessions, I now look forward to them.”
Wendy explained why she chose to run for Leukaemia CARE: I’d been a blood donor, then a plasma and platelet donor for a number of years when, at the age of 30, I was diagnosed with Essential Thrombocythaemia, a blood condition that affects the platelets in the blood and which, if not correctly treated, can lead to bleeding or clotting problems and in some cases strokes. This was a real shock for me but Leukaemia CARE helped me through this tough time by providing lots of useful advice and a shoulder to cry on. After persevering with a new medication, and despite some dreadful side effects, I’m now feeling much better so when I hit 40 this year I decided to do something worthwhile and enter the half marathon to raise money for the charity that provided me with so much support.”
Wendy will be running the Great North Run with her stepfather Philip Jones, who is also running for Leukaemia CARE.
Leukaemia CARE’s Fundraising Manager Louise Carlin added: As a charity, we rely on donations, fundraising events and, of course, our team of volunteers, to enable us to continue our vital work offering support to patients, particularly through our dedicated 24-hour freephone CARE Line. We’re the only cancer charity in Europe to offer round the clock telephone support, which patients can turn to when they are feeling lonely or anxious and just want a friendly, comforting voice to give them advice or just a bit of encouragement. Wendy has experienced first hand the kind of support Leukaemia CARE provides and we are delighted that she wants to raise money to help us keep this going. The Fundraising Team will be there on the day to cheer her on and we are looking forward to seeing her after she crosses the finish line.”
Wendy is aiming to raise at least £1,000, and if you would like to help her reach her target you can make a pledge by visiting www.justgiving.com/wendyhaywood.

About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale. He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.