It is with immense pleasure, pride and gratitude that I'm able to announce that the final fundraising total for St Benedict's Hospice (Charity No. 1019410) and The Children's Foundation (Charity No 1000013) is an incredible £105,233.00! Thanks, once again, to everyone who made a contribution to that total. There are literally thousands of you who have donated. I'll never grow tired of saying that every single donation was appreciated. No matter how large or small, they have all made a huge difference to the 2 charities.
The amount of individual donations of £10 and under has gone to make up a considerable portion of the £105,233.00. This is why people giving whatever they can afford, was so important to the 2 charities. This is why I valued those donations just as much as the huge donations.
As regular readers of this blog will know, the 3100 mile run across the USA in 100 days was an amazing journey. It was a difficult journey but one that was very much worth it. The next challenge, of course, is to run across Australia in just 70 days. The fundraising target for that run is £50,000. It's going to take a superhuman effort and lots of generousity to raise that kind of money again. I really do think that running 41 miles per day from Perth to Sydney will capture people's imagination. Via this blog and through increased media coverage, I will be trying my best to take people along the journey; both in training and the actual run itself. If it's half as exciting as the run across the USA then we are all in for a treat.
I look forward to getting back to updating the blog regularly in the new year. There is so much going on behind the scenes. I've got numerous motivational talks coming up. I now sit on the Regional Small Grants Panel at The Children's Foundation. I'm working on a couple of initiatives with the media and local charities. In a nutshell, life before the run across the USA is no longer recognisable from the one I have now. I have no complaints whatsoever.
Finally, to all the readers of this blog, I wish you all the best for 2012. My hopes for the new year are that with continued courage, integrity and faith giant steps towards the next victory will be achieved.
Happy New Year!
