Two brothers from Suffolk have raised more than £2,500 for St Elizabeth Hospice by taking part in a gruelling half Ironman triathlon in memory of their mother.
Jack Burch, 33 and his brother George, 27 competed in the Staffordshire 70.3 Ironman, which involved swimming 1.2 miles, cycling 56 miles and then running a half marathon, on Sunday, June 12.
The brothers, who were brought up in Grundisburgh and attended the local primary school and Farlingaye High School, decided to take part in the event to recognise the support the Hospice gave their mum Hannah Reynolds, who died seven years ago, after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.
“Other than a bit of friendly competition between brothers, we decided to take part to try and raise money for St Elizabeth Hospice in Suffolk which gave fantastic support to our mum during her struggle with brain cancer and continued to support our family after she passed away in 2015,” said the brothers.
They initially planned to take part in the event two years ago but it was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
George now lives in Woodbridge while Jack lives in London but makes regular trips back to Suffolk to visit family and friends.
Hannah, who lived in Alice Driver Road, Grundisburgh, died aged 49 nearly three years after being diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme - an aggressive form of brain cancer - which was inoperable.
At the time of her diagnosis she was a fitness instructor at Martlesham Leisure Club and a keen hockey player and was immediately forced to give up teaching her classes and her book keeping job as well as driving, as a result of the tumour affecting the right side of her body.
During her illness, Hannah, a former pupil at Copleston High School in Ipswich, learned to write with her left hand, sang in several fundraising concerts performed by her choir, Upbeat, and attended weekly sessions at Headway and Sue Ryder in Ipswich as well as receiving support as an out patient at St Elizabeth Hospice in Ipswich.
Jack and three of his friends have previously raised £1,500 for the hospice by walking the length of Hadrian’s Wall.
Anyone who would like to make a donation can do so at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/jack-and-george-burch
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