This year would have been the 40th London Marathon, so it was great sadness that the Coronavirus lockdown meant the inevitable – cancellation. In a matter of weeks, however, the organisers of the London Marathon had managed to create a new event to fill its place – the 2.6 challenge.
The aim was to raise funds to save the UK’s charities. On Monday of that week, six days before the event, we received the resources and the information on how to participate. Never before have we rallied to participate in a national charitable event with such short notice, but we were all in this together and together we rallied. Charities all over the country got on board and people set about doing their socially distanced challenges in safe spaces.
Our Youth for Youth members jumped to action dancing in their bedrooms, doing online performances, eating lemons, chopping logs, dressing up and more. Meanwhile, our amazing volunteer team also joined the cause:
- Michelle Rose did two 2.6k runs and 126 continuous skips with her skipping rope in her back garden
- Gillian Gruder walked 2.6k twice
- Elaine Collins did a sponsored diet to lose 2.6lbs
- Hilda Bronstein, three times great grandmother walked 2.6k up the steep hills of Beaconsfield
- Our CEO Debra Brunner practised the piano for 2.6 hours (something she hasn’t done in a very long time…if ever)
- Jack Baum, our development coordinator, sorted 3500 comics, and that is A LOT of comics
This dedicated team raised £2200 overall – an incredible pull together and we would like to say a resounding thank you to all who rose to the challenge and to all those who generously sponsored. It was a very successful together plan!
