The Great North Run event will be respectfully modified to reflect the intense sadness which is being felt across the county – allowing brilliant runners to still raise incredible donations for charities such as ours, while remembering the devastating loss of Her Majesty The Queen. We are so grateful to Team CHECT: Alex, Arran, Caroline, Colin, Chris, Dan, Kayleigh, Nicole, Ryan, Sammy, Shaun and Steven. We greatly appreciate their support and wish them luck on the day whilst we remain respectful of the Queen and the Royal Family. Here you can meet some of our outstanding TeamCHECT, who will be running from Newcastle to South Shields in aid of CHECT on the 11th September:
Alexandra Allis
I discovered I enjoyed running later in life and set myself a goal to have a go at the Great North Run before I turned 50! Hopefully in 2022 I’ll achieve this a couple of years early after having to postpone twice due to Covid.
I wanted to raise funds for CHECT as my cousin’s little boy, Lucas was diagnosed with retinoblastoma when he was 18-months-old. He underwent single enucleation surgery to remove the affected eye which was past saving, then followed four rounds of chemotherapy. He has an artificial eye which matches really well. He’s now 6 and doing great.
Arran Fewkes – CEO, Birmingham Optical
CHECT has been our partner charity for many years now and it is still close to our hearts at Birmingham Optical. This is especially the case for Amanda – the Chief Commercial Officer at Birmingham Optical – who, as an Optometrist, played a small part in saving the sight due to an early referral of a young man that turned out to be her personal trainer. The story still brings an emotive response from everybody at Birmingham Optical as it reinforces why we turn up to work every day. This year I am running the Great North Run to raise donations which will be used by CHECT for communicating the importance in building awareness, the further research in retinoblastoma and support for the individuals including their families.
Chris Clark
Hi am Chris Clark I’m 44 years old from Middlesbrough. I’ve chosen to run this year’s GNR for the CHECT charity as my best friend’s daughter Meadow has been helped by CHECT for a number of years as she suffers from retinoblastoma, a rare form of cancer.
Colin and Caroline Freer
Our son Isaac was diagnosed with retinoblastoma at 5 months & our lives were turned upside down. We will always be grateful for the skill & dedication of Isaac’s doctors & nurses at Birmingham Children and Women’s Hospital & the fantastic support we received from CHECT. Isaac is now 17 & doing very well. We want to do all we can to support CHECT with helping other families in a similar situation to the one we found ourselves in & raising awareness about retinoblastoma. The Great North Run is a very popular event that receives a lot of media attention. We thought that running in it in support of CHECT would therefore raise the profile of the charity & awareness about the condition.
Dan Holmes
I’m running my first ever half marathon at the Great North Run on 11th September to raise money for CHECT. I’ve turned to running after getting too old to play football and enjoy it, although a 10k is the furthest event I’ve done so far, so the Great North Run should be a good challenge for me and my sore achilles and calves!!
My oldest son was diagnosed with retinoblastoma when he was 10-months-old and within days of the diagnosis we were in Birmingham Children’s Hospital having his eye removed. During those challenging times and in the years since (he is nearly 11 now) we have been supported by the fabulous people at CHECT who do amazing work in promoting awareness of the disease, funding research, helping families affected etc….and I know the funds I raise by doing the Great North Run will be used in the best way possible by them.
Nicole Hopewell
Eight months ago one of my closest friends messaged me and the girls to tell us that she had taken her little boy for some tests, and the unthinkable was the result. He had cancer in his eye. I don’t think anyone comprehended what the next 8 months would entail. Cillian is currently still smiling and doing us all so proud.
Leonnie and Gary are the most amazing parents, and in the face of adversity what did they do? Get on with it, with a smile for the world to see, raising thousands of pounds along the way, for a cause that would very quickly become close to their hearts. I know that this has devastated their family and turned their world upside down. But the way in which they have kept going is nothing short of admirable and just amazing. So to do my bit I’m going to run for Cillian.
For Leonnie and Gary, for Cillain, for Aoife and everyone else who is going through this I would like to raise money by doing my third Great North Run.
Ryan Wedderburn
I’m running the Great North run for CHECT – a charity that helped my family through the toughest times – our daughter’s retinoblastoma diagnosis in 2020 through to 2022. I would love to give something back to them as a thank you for their amazing support and guidance so they are able to continue their fantastic work and help other families who may require their service. We will forever be grateful to CHECT for everything.
Sammy Yorke
In 2015, not long before his 2nd birthday, my son, Mylo, was diagnosed with unilateral retinoblastoma. CHECT helped us as a family, make sense of this diagnosis and answer any questions we may have had, and offer support in a very unsettling time. Through these difficult times is when I found my love of running. I have ran a few charity runs to support CHECT and this will be my second GNR run, the previous in 2019 also in aid of CHECT. I feel this is a way I can try and give back and help, the way that CHECT have helped and continue to help many families like my own going through a very uncertain and challenging time. Thank you 💛
Shaun Heelbeck
In June 2020, during lockdown, Noëlle was diagnosed with retinoblastoma at the age of 17 months.
At that time, Dad Shaun devised his own challenge, to raise funds for CHECT. The Great Noëlle Run was Shaun’s version of the Great North Run – 13 Half Marathons! He began straight away and completed the last one in October 2020. And now, with the virtual runs under his belt, Shaun is doing it all over again, for real this time. Shaun will be a valued member of TeamCHECT on 11 September.
Shaun says: “Hearing the words ‘risk to life’ is unbearable and something no parent should ever hear. Words cannot describe how devastating the diagnosis was to our family. Seeing Noëlle fight so hard and the other little Rb warriors, this has inspired me to fight for them in as many fundraising challenges as possible. Now I finally get to take part in the actual GNR for the first time!”
If you are interested in taking part in the next Great North Run – email fundraising@chect.org.uk