OTR is lucky to have some amazing people in the community raising money for the work we do.
A few months back we were contacted by Hester, who wanted to run a half marathon for OTR. Hester’s super-cool and kept us up-to-date with her training progress; chose the Bath half marathon as the event she’d run in, and we watched as her fundraising total impressively totted up (it now stands at an incredible £900 including gift aid!)
All was looking rosy.
But then what happened? It went and blummin’ snowed didn’t it?!
Lots. ❄❄
Lots and lots – in fact, enough to cancel the Bath half marathon. ❌
Although this was a real stroke of bad luck and a bit gutting all-round, Hester wasn’t deterred. Keen to crack on and finish what she set out to achieve, we received an email from Hester to say that this weekend, she headed out and smashed a half marathon anyway!
It would have been easy to back out, or put it off until the next organised event, but instead Hester took the initiative to run like the wind on her own terms and ran across the Downs to complete her efforts for OTR.
Here’s Hester with her account of the half marathon journey:
“I’m not a natural runner. In fact, I really hate it. However, while the challenge of the Bath Half seemed colossal, I was motivated to keep on training once I’d seen just how much incredible work OTR do for mental health in Bristol!
Mental Health is something that, fortunately, more and more people seem to be talking about. Before I got to university, no one seemed to discuss it. It was something I was only familiar with through popular culture, often sensationalised and distorted in films or books. I never really expected mental health issues to affect people I know and definitely not myself.
However, I’ve now seen first hand the psychological effects which the intense stress of social, academic, beauty, work, alcohol and drug-related pressures (to name but a few) can have on young people. I’ve also been lucky enough to have a support network in the form of my family, should those pressures build up in my own life, but I know not everyone’s as fortunate in this respect.
That’s why I was so amazed by the wonderful, extensive and FREE services that OTR provide for my generation in Bristol. OTR’s workshops, anti-stigma campaigns, parental help and creative therapies all stood out to me especially (alongside their more traditional forms of counselling) as being exactly the kind of safe spaces which young people should have access to if they’re struggling.
On another positive note, training for the Bath Half showed me the wonders that running could do for my own mental health. Despite this, I still managed to hate every moment of the 2 hours and 20 mins it took me to drag myself around the Downs last Friday (after the Bath Half was cancelled due to snow).
However, I owed it to every single person who donated to OTR on my behalf and I’m just really happy that the proceeds are going to such a worthwhile, welcoming and friendly charity!”
👟👟👟
We’re so impressed with Hester’s determination for OTR and we want to say a huge thank you!
If you’d like to top up Hester’s fundraising efforts (maybe we can reach the £1,000 mark?), here’s the place to donate.