A five-year-old boy from Newmarket will take part in the Mini Great South Run in memory of his father – who died when he was just three and half months old.
Stirling Klottrup will raise money for the Outward Bound Trust through the event, which was a charity important to his father, Christian Klottrup, who dies from bowel cancer aged just 35.
The family was living in the USA and just after Stirling was born, Christian began suffering with liver pain and couldn’t eat.
He was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer and underwent an operation to remove a blockage but struggled with complications.
He never left the hospital and died seven weeks later in October 2013.
The tragic loss of the husband and father was hard on the family and they decided to move back to the UK.
Stirling’s mother, Kerensa, said: “Christian didn’t ever ask why me. He was frustrated with the way things were going and getting straight answers from medical staff but when he knew he was dying he said he’d had a good life and wanted to make sure that we would continue with our lives.
“It was incredibly tough to be in another country with a four-month-old baby and having to return to full time work as cell biologist for a biotech company. I needed a plan to move back to the UK.
“I didn’t want to give up the life we had built together, but I needed to make the return a positive thing.
“It took me six months to make that happen but my company managed to transfer my job to our Cambridge site.
“Life was still tough but at least we could start rebuilding. Stirling was my rock, I was so grateful to have him to keep me going.”
“We have since expanded our family to include my new husband Ian, his daughter Eleanor, seven, and our daughter together, two-year-old Beatrix.”
October 1 will mark five years since they lost Christian so Kerensa and Stirling wanted to do something to celebrate his life.
The Outward Bound Trust is an educational charity that uses the outdoors to help young people to develop. They run adventurous and challenging outdoor learning courses that equip young people with valuable skills for education, work and life.
Christian went on an Outward Bound course when he was 17 that helped him to develop great leadership skills.
Kerensa said: “Before Stirling was born we had talked about our plans for the future. He wanted Stirling to do one of the Outward Bound courses too.
“He also wanted him to be generally outdoorsy and probably into computers and technology like he had been.”
Stirling is looking forward to the Simplyhealth Mini Great South Run on Saturday, October 20.
Kerensa added: “Stirling is full of life in every way. He’s outgoing, fun and very affectionate.
“Running has always been part of our lives. I ran my first half marathon when I was pregnant with Stirling and it’s something he has always enjoyed.
“Stirling is excited to be doing his first run. I suspect this will be the first of many.”
Stirling will run together with his mum on Saturday, October 20 dressed as Peter Pan as the colours of the Outward Bound Trust are green and white.
He will also cheer on his mum the following day when she takes on the 10-mile Simplyhealth Great South Run on October 21.
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