Ex-pat John McGurk is running between Germany and Glasgow next month and he’s asking Edinburgh people to show their support for children by making a donation to the charity Children 1st.
John will be running 560 miles over four days to raise awareness of the work the charity does. His epic feat (make that feet! – Ed) will take him over much of the country, and he runs through Edinburgh in the early hours of Monday 6 June.
John said: “Normally I’d ask people to come and run with me but this particular leg is through the night, so unless anyone wants to run over the Forth Road Bridge with me at 2am I’m asking them instead to donate whatever they can to the charity! Or send me messages on Twitter, which will keep me going.
“I survived a traumatic childhood and chose Children 1st because they work with abused children and those whose lives are blighted by poverty. The work they do is all about helping children recover from trauma, or helping families who need support. That’s what needs addressed, and what I want to change.”
John and his team of runners will pound the streets through the night as their schedule takes them from one luxury hotel – Greywalls Hotel in Gullane – to another – Andy Murray’s luxury Cromlix Hotel overnight. But they’ll hardly have time to stop for a rest!
On the way they’ll pass the Royal Yacht Britannia in Leith, Edinburgh Castle and the Zoo on Corsorphine Road, then at South Queensferry they’ll run over the iconic Forth Road Bridge.
The papermill worker set up a charitable association in Germany and has raised almost €1million for children’s organisations across the globe. Now the former squaddie, who always runs in his kilt, is heading back home to Scotland and insists he’ll do everything possible to show children that they matter and are worth running for.
“When I read that one in five children in Scotland is living in poverty that just blew me away,” said John. “I wanted to do something to raise awareness as well as money, and so I planned this run.
“Children 1st is a great charity, with services in and around Edinburgh. They work hard for children, young people and their families and I want to raise as much money as I can for them.”
Alison Todd, Chief Executive of Children 1st, said: “I hope that people will get behind John as he makes his way through the capital. By doing so you’ll help children who, like John, have had their lives impacted by poverty and abuse.”
For up-to-date news and to follow John on his run see @Children1st on Twitter, #1in3Run.
John’s Justgiving page is https://www.justgiving.com/1in3run/
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