18 Sep VIRTUAL GREAT NORTH RUN CROSSES FINISHING LINE WITH NEARLY £3,500 RAISED!

The Huddersfield Town Foundation last week completed the Great North Run, raising valuable money to fund its projects across Kirklees in the process!

Usually taking place in the North East, the event was reimagined this year to enable anybody to complete a half marathon route local to them.

Town Foundation staff took the opportunity to use the event as a fundraiser, enlisting the help of supporters of our work and local people to put together a formidable team.

Staff members kickstarted the challenge in Hartshead at 10am on Sunday 13 September 2020, with others taking part from their doorsteps. The group did the race in a relay setup to help maintain social distancing,

The route took in Mirfield, and a stretch alongside the Calder River, before heading onto Leeds Road through Deighton and finishing outside the John Smith’s Stadium.

We must give a special mention to PL Kicks Targeted Manager Isaac Keighley who completed roughly 10 miles and Community Coach Ash Hinds, who completed the whole 13.1 miles on little to no training – a fantastic achievement!

Our gratitude also goes to Sam Thornton, who completed the challenge from Ossett to the John Smith’s, as well as Jodie Calvert and Sam Macbeth who ran the whole distance and set up fundraising pages.

With the help of several more people completing a range of mileages, the total mileage attributed to the Town Foundation stands at 126.4 miles.

They couldn’t have done so without the help of our Trust Fund Coordinator Tom Farrell, who we must also commend for his work in providing food and drink and marshalling along the route.

To date, the total raised from the event stands at a fantastic £3433.79! Our thanks go to everybody who has donated, whatever the amount, as well as anybody that has shared the fundraising link.

There is still time to donate if you wish to do so; if that is the case, please visit our Just Giving page – https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/htfoundationteam.

Sam Thornton, a schoolteacher who took part to raise funds for the Town Foundation, said of the experience:

“It was fantastic to be involved in the #Virtual GNR and help raise some money and awareness for the Town Foundation. So many people have been so generous and helped support me through the day with kind words, donations and shout outs in the car!

I got a bit of cramp towards the end but managed to hobble the last two miles along Leeds Road and finish in a heap on the floor outside the John Smith’s, finishing in two hours 29 minutes. I now can’t wait to do it again next year!”

You can view a full album of photos from the day over on our Facebook page.

To find out more about any of the Town Foundation’s fundraising initiatives, please contact Fundraising Executive Lisa Bottomley via lisa.bottomley@htafcfoundation.com or 07741 671 596.