Mar 22 - Mum Of Three Takes On London Marathon To Support Angelman Syndrome Charity
With just a month to go until taking on the mammoth task of running the London Marathon, a mother-of-three is training and working towards completing the 26.2 miles (42.2 km) race.
Jane Tunbridge, 45, decided to run the race this year in honour of her son Sean to mark his 18th birthday, while also raising money for ASSERT - a charity which supports families affected by Angelman Syndrome, and the Gibraltar Disability Society.
Sean is the only youngster in Gibraltar with Angelman Syndrome, which is a rare neuro genetic disorder charaterised by severe intellectual and developmental disability. Sean is unable to walk or talk, and Jane hopes to raise funds to improve his future and others living with the disability.
She said: “In his own world he is very happy and very sociable, he loves the water and enjoys swimming. Once he starts laughing, it’s contagious and we’re often in fits of laughter with him.”
Having already raised nearly £8,000, Jane is training and working towards the goal of completing the London Marathon together with her friend Lisa Cutts from the UK.
Together they are relying on training apps to track each other’s progress, and Jane has also been going to the gym to get stronger while also following marathon runner Nell McAndrew’s training programme to add distance and duration to her running.
Jane previously ran the Great North Run in aid of St Martin’s School, so she’s aware of the challenge that lies ahead of her.
There have been a number of fundraising activities to help raise funds, under the banner of #TeamSean, with a Body Combat event, a cake stall and Jane also received a donation from the Integral Yoga Centre’s flag day, as well as corporate sponsorship from local businesses.
Jane adds: “With Gibraltar being so small, word of mouth has helped towards my fundraising. Either people know me, they know Sean or they know my husband Wayne.”
The family has had its own set of challenges of living with Angelman Syndrome in the family, however Jane says Sean’s siblings 15-year-old Sami and 12-year-old Katie have been a great support and are very good with their brother.
Jane adds: “Sean was 15 months old when he was diagnosed with Angelman Syndrome. His sleep has been an issue since puberty but we’re grateful his health has been very good with the seizure aspect and is able to eat properly.
“My lifeline has been Facebook where I’ve been able to reach out to other families and there’s also a yearly conference held in Chicago to help families living with Angelman Syndrome which is of great help to both me and Wayne when we connect with other parents.”
Jane has set up a Just Giving page to help with her fundraising to help raise awareness and gain support for the disorder that affects one in 20,000 individuals.
To help Jane visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jane-Tunbridge?utm_id=13
{fcomment}
