It was October 2023 where my amazing mother-in-law Claire lost her very short battle with cancer. My wife and I were 14 weeks pregnant at the time - knowing Claire would never get to meet her grandchild was a tough pill to swallow.
But I got to the start line (spoiler alert - I got to the finish line too!) because of the amazing help and support offered from Sue Ryder. The end-of-life care Sue Ryder offered Claire ensured she remained dignified in her final weeks and days. It helped so much. Life will never be the same and we miss Claire more than I thought was possible. I would give anything for five more minutes with her and for her to meet Poppy, her first grandchild.
My marathon place was through Sue Ryder, and they provided so much help in the run up to the race. I knew they would have cheer points but didn’t really know what that meant. What transpired was the best feeling I could have hoped for - big beaming smiles, cheers, flags, pure emotion!
I’d only set myself the goal of finishing within 5 hrs - ambitious for my first marathon - and I completed the race in 5hrs 25mins. This was never about a time though - it was just about doing something big to try raise money for Sue Ryder and to acknowledge the size of the hole that Claire has left.
I have to say the biggest thank you to my wife Maisie and my family who came down and made sure I ate, drank and kept calm. Having a cheer squad was an amazing feeling; every moment of the marathon I knew that there were people rooting for me and it meant I smiled for 26.2 miles!
And to every single person who sponsored me - the total is now over £4600 which blows my mind! Thank you so much.
Can I do it again please?!
You can register your interest for 2026 here: TCS London Marathon 2026 | Sue Ryder
Kind regards,
Jake Swift, Henlow