World record holder's marathon trek helps Cambs charity raise £225,000
Ben Blowes helped raise £225,000 for Tom's Trust by running 31 marathons in as many days. - Credit: Tom's Trust
A Guinness World Record holder who ran 31 marathons in as many days has helped raise £225,000 for a Cambridgeshire charity that cares for children living with brain tumours.
Ben Blowes ran for a different child each day that Tom’s Trust supports as part of its 31 Stars campaign in December last year.
The 49-year-old, a former Pride of Britain nominee, initially aimed to help the campaign reach £31,000, but it can now provide support for 225 children with brain tumours and up to 675 family members for the next year.
“It was a daunting challenge, which I wouldn’t have been able to attempt without the support of my family and the fantastic team behind the campaign,” Ben said.
“After meeting Debs (Deborah Whiteley, co-founder of Tom’s Trust) a few years ago and hearing her talk about her son Tom and the changes she wanted to make in his name, I knew I had to do something to help.”
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The donations will go towards the provision of psychological and mental health care for children with brain tumours.
Despite suffering injury early on in the challenge and finishing one race on crutches, Ben powered through to cross the line with sons Spencer and Joel.
Ben Blowes completed his marathon challenge, which helped raise funds for Tom's Trust, with sons Spencer and Joel (pictured). - Credit: Tom's Trust
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“I was absolutely blown away by the support that Ben’s challenge received and so grateful for the support that he showed to us,” Deborah said.
“It was a very emotional campaign but one that was about positive change.
“It was an honour to be a part of it and we’re thrilled that so much money has been raised to help so many children.”
Tom’s Trust was founded by Deborah and Andrew Whiteley following the death of their son Tom in November 2010 after an eight-month battle with a brain tumour.
The charity has pioneered a psychological care and support program for children with brain tumours in hospitals within the UK and aims to implement this within every UK hospital that treats children for brain tumours.
Its latest fundraising campaign, Tea for Tom, is planned to raise more than £10,000 for children with brain tumours.
For more information on Tom’s Trust and how to get involved, visit: https://www.tomstrust.org.uk/get-involved/.
