Fundraiser organises own half marathon in Haiti after official run cancelled
Howard Lake | 6 February 2018 | News
A charity runner has organised her own half marathon in Haiti after the official event was cancelled due to travel warnings.
The official run, organised annually by Let’s Go Haiti for the past five years, was cancelled due to US Government travel warnings which seriously affected participation. Jane Holden, from South Leicestershire, was one of the runners who had planned to take part.
She was running to raise awareness and funds for the Andrew Grene Foundation (AGF), a charity that aims to transform lives in Haiti. Undeterred by the cancellation, she has organised her own event in its place, naming it the Holden Haiti Half.
Holden said: “The run fell on my birthday weekend and I had already planned a few meetings in Haiti on behalf of the AGF, so the timing of the run felt like fate.
“I was asking friends and family to donate what they would have spent on birthday cards or chocolate on a small donation instead. I had planned for the fundraising money I raised to go towards the AGF education project, specifically a new sports court, with my target being £1,000.”
How to organise a safe run in Haiti
Holden says that she was “devastated” to hear that the official run had been cancelled.
“Instead of accepting it, I was determined to do it even more. I wasn’t going to give up on Haiti.”
She contacted Reconnaissance Group, the security company used by the AGF, and explained that she wanted to run a half marathon on her own in Haiti. Together they negotiated a plan to make her vision of a half marathon in Haiti a reality.
She explained: “With the security team’s support, we have organised a safe route, staying out of areas that have been raised with security concerns in the city. There will also be a body guard closely escorting me in a car for added security.”
The run will now take place on 25 February in Port au Prince.
Holden acknowledged that she could have just run the half marathon in her hotel on a treadmill. “But it wouldn’t have been the right thing to do. “I was set on running a half marathon in Haiti, for Haiti and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
She added that she hopes the event can continue. “If it’s successful,” she said, “I hope to organise a public event where runners can join me next year.”
With corporate support from P3 Group, she is fundraising for the Andrew Grene Foundation via JustGiving.
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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.