A young boy who caught the running bug has run 150 km and raised more than £3,000 for the Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity (ECHC).
Hudson Brown, now aged 8, set out to complete 30 five km runs, initially setting a £30 fund raising target and later raising it to £100, but the James Gillespies’ Primary School pupil’s fundraising JustGiving page is currently sitting at £2,788.
His school teacher mum and running partner, Sarah Igoe, said: “In a bid to help me get fit, Hudson began running with me at the end of June. Upon completing his first ever 5k the first time he ran with me, he quickly caught the running bug.
“He then set himself the challenge of running thirty 5k’s before returning to school in August. In order to achieve this he had to run at least five 5k’s a week which is hard enough for an adult, let alone a seven year old.”
Primary 4 pupil Hudson completed his summer running challenge with days to spare before the returning to school. The total raised when added to Gift Aid comes to an impressive £3,343.
Delighted mum Sarah added: “We couldn’t be prouder of how well he has done, proving that a big heart and a can-do attitude is sometimes all you need to do something incredible.
“Thank you so much to everyone who has supported Hudson – it really has meant the world to him. Together we have raised an amazing amount of money for the ECHC which will help many families in their time of need.”
ECHC aims to support every baby, child, young person and family that visits the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People (RHCYP) by providing daily activities, ward-based youth work, a family support service, hospital shop, and by funding life-changing medical equipment and ground breaking research.
Pippa Johnston, director at ECHC, said: “What a phenomenal achievement by Hudson. We are always in awe and so grateful to supporters who go the extra mile (literally) to help seriously ill children and their families going through the toughest times in hospital. We would like to say an enormous thank you to Hudson for his strong legs and even stronger heart.”
You can still donate to Hudson’s JustGiving page here.
Stephen Rafferty is a former crime correspondent at The Scotsman and was a staff reporter for the Daily Record and Edinburgh Evening News. He has freelanced for many of the Scottish and UK national newspaper titles. Got a story? Get in touch - stephen@theedinburghreporter.co.uk
