A Suffolk woman raised £1,600 by running a marathon after a family tragedy which resulted in the death of a beloved mother and grandmother just four days before Christmas.
Brockley resident Caroline Hollands lost her 65-year-old mother, Sharon Fisher on December 21, 2017 following a stroke.
"Mum just had this massive stroke and sadly died 26 hours later. It was a hell of a shock," she said.
Alongside running her family farm with her brother and working part-time in the accounts department at Northgate Foods, Ms Hollands, 47, is a member of the Moreton Hall Runners and decided to fundraise by completing a marathon in her mother's memory.
"I just wanted to give something back to the hospital for the care and support they gave to my mother and I ran it in her memory," she said.
"I should have run the London Marathon three years ago, but it got cancelled."
Determined to complete her challenge, she finally managed to run the London Marathon this year on Sunday, October 2.
Though slightly disappointed with her time of 5:08, Ms Hollands said: "The first half I was doing really good and in my 24 years of running, I have never hit a brick wall but I did going over Tower Bridge.
"The second half was hard work but it was an amazing day."
Ms Hollands managed to raise a total of £1,600 for My WiSH Charity's Butterfly Appeal, which enhances the care of West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust's end-of-life patients.
Previously, the Butterfly Appeal has funded a new palliative care nurse and provided day beds and comfort packs with essentials for family members.
The appeal is now raising £340,000 to build terminally ill patients a dedicated indoor space and garden at West Suffolk Hospital.
My WiSH fundraising manager Sally Daniels thanked Ms Hollands for her fundraising efforts: "This event was really important to Caroline as Sharon was also a runner so what better way to celebrate her than to conquer the London Marathon.
"It was a pleasure to meet Caroline and Geoff and to be able to reunite them with Sarah who looked after Sharon and the family back in 2017.
"We can't thank them enough for their support."
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