About

Hello, thanks for stopping by!

On October 2nd this year, I will be running the London Marathon raising money for International Needs – to help them provide for street children in Kenya. Please donate and help me reach my target - every bit helps!

I’d love to tell you a bit about the cause I’m running for… Can you imagine being homeless for just a day? We often take for granted that we have beds to sleep in and roofs over our heads. Most of us get to eat a hot meal a day or more and live in a society children can access their basic right to education. This is far from the reality for street youth and children in Kenya. An estimated 60,000 children and young people live on the streets in Nairobi and this number is growing. The majority of children living on the streets in Nairobi live in informal settlements and rely on scavenging, begging and picking through rubbish for daily survival. Many have ended up on the street due to abandonment, domestic conflict or extreme poverty at home and have had no formal basic education before life on the streets.

I remember how stressful it felt at a time I had to move out of my home for a short while when there was a leak in the ceiling. There’s something about having a home that gives you a foundation of peace and rest. It’s hard to imagine the stark reality of being homeless…

That’s why I’m delighted to take this opportunity to run the London Marathon (all 26.2 miles of it!) to raise funds for the street youth in Kenya!

The goal of the project is to rescue, rehabilitate and re-integrate street youth in Kenya back to their families and society through a gospel centred approach to restore them.

The project is executed by International Needs UK through Grace Empowerment, a local Christian charity in Kenya. The charity rescues street boys and youth and provides them with food, health care, identity cards, clothes and other basic resources at a drop-in centre. Grace Empowerment goes further to support them with non-formal education, vocational training and counselling from the gospel to break them free from redundancy and addictions to drugs. Grace Empowerment has rescued over 100 street boys since it began its mission in 2006. It now seeks funds to build a rehabilitation centre which will provide a longer and more defined rehabilitation programme for the boys whilst harnessing their skills and talents. This will enable them to earn subsistent livelihoods when they leave the centre and re-integrate back with their families and into society.

Running the London Marathon has been a life long ambition for me. It’s going to be a challenge balancing training with raising a toddler and working. I’m both nervous and excited to run the whole 26.2 miles! All your support and knowing I’m running for this amazing cause gives me a massive boost!

So please support me in undertaking this challenge by giving what you can to help street boys in Kenya with Grace Empowerment.

Also, the Marathon place comes with a fundraising target amount (of £1,700) so please help me out here! And I will do my best not to come last!

Thanks for reading this note and for your support. See you at the finish line!

Social