A determined runner has taken on a gruelling 100km ultra marathon to raise vital funds for Newcastle charity The People’s Kitchen.
Sean Waller (41) from North Shields completed the St Cuthbert’s Way Ultra – The Race Against the Tide, raising more than £750 for The People’s Kitchen, with Gift Aid taking the total raised to more than £900.
The challenge saw Sean tackle the full 100km route along St Cuthbert’s Way, crossing the border between Scotland and England before finishing on Holy Island in Northumberland.
The ultra starts in the historic Scottish Border town of Melrose and follows the spectacular St Cuthbert’s Way through the Scottish Borders and Northumberland National Park, with competitors facing a strict time limit and, appropriately, the challenge of reaching Holy Island before the tide cuts them off.
For Sean, however, the gruelling challenge was about more than personal achievement.
He decided to take on his first 100km ultra as a personal challenge while raising money for The People’s Kitchen, a charity he and his family feel provide an enormously important service to people in need across Newcastle.
Sean said: “My family and I think that the work The People’s Kitchen does is phenomenal and hugely important.
“I recently ran the 100km St Cuthbert’s Way Ultra to raise money for this amazing charity, and I hope this provides some support for the crucial work they do.”
Sean’s fundraising page has since reached £753.60, with a further £153.40 in Gift Aid, and donations continue to support the charity’s work.
The People’s Kitchen operates 365 days a year, providing 300 hot meals every day, as well as clothing and, importantly, a safe and welcoming place where people can have a hot meal, a warm drink and someone to talk to.
The charity is 100 per cent volunteer-led and receives no government funding, relying on the generosity of the public and supporters such as Sean to continue its work.
Sean’s fundraising page highlighted the simple things that many people take for granted – being warm, clean, clothed and fed, and having somebody to talk to – while recognising that for many of the charity’s Friends, these necessities cannot be taken for granted.
His challenge was certainly no easy undertaking. The St Cuthbert’s Way Ultra covers 100km and includes thousands of feet of ascent and descent, with runners having to complete the course within the event’s strict cut-off times.
Sean’s fundraising can be found on his JustGiving page, with donations supporting The People’s Kitchen.
“When I was running, I kept thinking about why I was raising funds for the The People’s Kitchen, it does such important work to support some of the most vulnerable people in our community,” he added.
Sean isn’t the only fundraiser that has run for the charity. In the recent Great North Run 35 volunteers ran the 13.1mile course raising an amazing £20,000.