Dave Woodbridge, Bishop Challoner Catholic College:
‘I personally found it harder than I thought it was going to be maybe because it was a bit warm, it was more hilly than I thought too, but I got through it OK. Seeing the sea was a highlight for me. It was a long drive up this morning - got here as the sun came up. I was very moved by the plight of the people in Zimbabwe and was asked to go for it and it seemed like a really good cause- so that’s why I did it.’
Rosemary O'Donell: ‘I ran with the Birmingham gang from St John Fisher it was great to have all the CAFOD cheerers. The group were running and my friend from Lancaster diocese encouraged me. I like being part of a team and was running such a terrific cause as the Catholic Today/CAFOD initiative for Zimbabwe.’
Andrew Baker, Bishop Challoner, Our Lady and Mount Carmel Redditch: ‘I loved it. I loved every minute of it. This is my third half marathon; I have done Malvern and Stratford - getting married and having children and running the Great North run are highlights of my life - absolutely brilliant. You see the big crowd stretching out in front of you and before the race gets underway you have that guy Mr Motivator who gives out the most amazing stories and different plights. Very humbling. I am glad I did it for Catholic Today/CAFOD. Real privilege to run for the people in Zimbabwe. I give money to them every month but this was a good thing for me too. You feel like a real pain trying to get money from people but its such a good cause.’
Fred Stevenson, St Thomas Aquinas School: ‘Very good. My inspiration was my dad who has cancer and just running for such a good cause as the people in Zimbabwe.
Chris Catchpole, St Thomas, Stourbridge: ‘It was hard work. I have done a few half marathons before. I was asked to do it by my parish priest because of the situation and unfolding crisis in Zimbabwe. I hope I have managed to raise plenty of money for them.’
Edward Kennedy, St Bridgets, Northfields, Birmingham: ‘Fantastic! Lovely day. It was my first Great North. Angela Vince was our contact and she encouraged it. It was and is a great cause to be part of this Catholic Today/CAFOD collaboration.’
Paul Toal, St Thomas Aquinas: ‘Lovely run, really nice. We do support CAFOD and the school usually supports it. The Vince family roped us in and inspired us.’
Stephen Kellen, The Friary, Solihull: ‘I have never enjoyed a cup of tea so much in my life - its supposed to be cold in the North East. It was such a challenge to run for such a good cause.’
Garry Higgins, Our Lady Queen of Peace, Worcester: ‘It was hard and it was hot. It was great - bit of a climb between 3 and 6 miles and then it flattens off a bit. That finish line never seemed to get any closer. It was a privilege to run for Catholic Today/CAFOD.
Sam Gannon, University of Birmingham Chaplaincy: ‘It was tough and quite hilly. I ran with my girlfriend, Rosemary. We said the rosary all the way round. Members of my family are running today and my dad encouraged us to run for Catholic Today/CAFOD. Every time we went pass drummers I felt really spurred on.’
Mark Gannon, St John Fisher ‘Very hard work. It was my first Great North. I ran in Cardiff a couple of years ago and ran in Stratford last year. It was up hill all the way. Such a great crowd - I am a specialist down hill runner!!! We were running for the development work in Zimbabwe. We have done quite a bit of fund raising around the parishes. I texted everybody I knew, took me an hour as I am not a professional texter. I hope we raise a load of money for such a good cause.’
Daniel Vince, St John Fisher, Kings Heath, ‘The first couple of miles seemed to fly by after that it got a bit tougher with the weather being hot. Really enjoyed it. It was my first time and I was inspired by my mum to run for Catholic Today/CAFOD. ‘The situation in Zimbabwe moved me to run. The highlights were the start line and the finishing line!!’
Peter Vince, St John Fisher: ‘It was great, it was a real joy to be running with my four children. I ran with the youngest girl in the race - Sarah - joy to represent Catholic Today / CAFOD. Actually to be running for people who really need our money and support. If you’ve got your health, and some wealth and a faith you have got everything and its doing a little bit to help others on the way.’
Sarah Vince, St John Fisher: ‘I am so tired. I am the youngest female runner. I can’t believe that I have done it. I am overwhelmed but I would do it again. Its such a good cause - shows what you believe in and I am glad I did it for Catholic Today/CAFOD.
Abigail Vince, St John Fisher: Kings Heath, ‘It was good. It was hot, that was a bit difficult. It’s my third Great North Run. Highlight for me was crossing the finishing line. That is by far the best part. I did it for the project in Zimbabwe - I am a midwifery student and wanted to help improve things there.’
Rachel Vince, St John Fisher, Kings Heath: ‘It was harder than I thought it would be. This was my first half marathon - I went from 0 to 13 miles in 3 months. At the beginning I didn’t think I would do it but with the encouragement of my mum and dad I did it. There was one thing that touched me - those who had to walk miles when in labour. This woman said, ‘I don’t cry I just walk.’ This really helped me and inspired me.’
Claire Walton, Catholic Today ‘I have competed in a few half marathons and even one full marathon before, but can honestly say that this run was the most enjoyable. The support from the spectators was very encouraging, especially when I was shattered towards the end. Children cooled passing runners down by squirting water at us and one child almost chased me with a water bottle, demanding that I go faster! The camaraderie amongst those participating was extremely inspiring and my favourite moments were of hundreds of runners jogging through the tunnels chanting loudly ‘Oggy! Oggy! Oggy!’ - although the ‘Oi! Oi! Oi’s’ grew considerably weaker as the miles wore us down!
My legs were stiff and sore for days afterwards but it was certainly worth it, not only for a personal achievement, but to be able to be a part of a team that has raised money for such an important and worthy cause. I am very proud to have been a part of the Catholic Today Team and would most certainly do it all again, though not just yet!’
My Great North Run Experienceby Yvonne McGregor |
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It is now just over a week since I finished the Great North Run as I sit down to convey my thoughts about the day. As I generally run or cycle on my own I did approach the day with some trepidation, not so much the distance involved but the fact that I had 54000 people vying for a very limited space around me!
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Banbury School team raise £5,000 in Great North Run for CAFOD
Teachers and pupils from Blessed George Napier Catholic School took the school run to a whole new level on Sunday 20 September by participating in this year’s world famous Great North Run for aid agency CAFOD. The team have raised £5,000 towards life-changing work in some of the poorest countries in the world.
The team of five teachers and 14 sixth-formers, led by the head of the sixth form college Chris Martin, travelled 230 miles to join 54,000 runners, including celebrities such as James Cracknell and Gordon Ramsey. They completed the gruelling 13.1mile race from Newcastle to South Shields in times ranging from one hour and 47 minutes to two and half hours.
PE teacher Ryan Lloyd was the first of the team to finish. Ryan said: ‘What a great experience. We raise a lot of money for CAFOD anyway but this was the first time we’ve tried running as a team as a fund raising event and it’s been great. The whole school got involved and has been behind us the whole way – a huge school effort. By taking part in the Great North Run and all the training it involves, the pupils have really gone the extra mile to do something for others.’
Pupil Joseph McGivern (17) was the first pupil of the team to finish in one hour and 50 minutes. Joseph said: ‘It was a good laugh and a great opportunity to help those less fortunate. The crowd and the atmosphere were amazing and running with your mates really kept you going. I’d definitely do it again.’
Chris Martin wanted to enter the Great North Run to raise money to help development projects around the world, and was particularly inspired by the mission ‘breaking the chains of poverty’ after seeing participants complete a marathon whilst chained together. He then encouraged other members of staff and pupils to join him and the idea took off.
CAFOD works with local communities in over 50 countries to help them meet their own needs. It does this through more than 500 partner organisations – trusted, local organisations staffed by local people who are working to reduce poverty. Last year the CAFOD team managed to raise £55,000 through the Great North Run event. This year, given the massive impact of the financial crisis hitting the poorest people in the world hardest, the team are aiming their sights even higher.
