A PRESTWICK nurse, who participated in the London Marathon on Sunday, completing it in five hours 49 minutes, has raised almost £6000.
Laura Gilmore, 31, ran on Sunday to raise money for the British Lung Foundation (BLF) and will donate a whopping £5,836 to the charity.
Laura’s dad was diagnosed in December 2015 with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) a fatal lung disease and sadly passed away five months later.
Speaking before the marathon, Laura said: “One of the main reasons I’m running is to raise money to help increase the awareness of the disease. I want to give people more time with their family."
Afterwards she commented: “It really was an incredible day. I had friends and family from all over who travelled to support me. I hit 'the wall' at 30km. I felt nauseated and was in pain, but seeing my family along the course at the BLF cheer points helped me get through it.
"It was more painful to try and walk than it was to run, I had no option but to keep going. My legs somehow wouldn't stop, I was like a Duracell Bunny.
“I can't believe how much I’ve raised, it just goes to show what you can achieve with a little help, love and support from your family and friends.
"It will be a year on May 22 since my Dad died. It's been a tough journey so to donate £6000 to the British Ling Foundation almost a year to his death seems rather fitting.
Laura has raised £5,836 so far, smashing her target of £1,800 and she is still determained to reach £6000.
Katie Lyall, community fundraising manager for the BLF, said: “We’re incredibly grateful to Laura for her fantastic support.
"It’s thanks to the amazing fundraising efforts of people like her and the rest of Team Breathe that we are able to continue our vital work, researching new treatments and supporting people living with lung disease across the UK.”
Anyone who would like to support Laura can visit her fundraising webpage at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/DaddyG.
If you’ve been inspired to follow in her footsteps and help fight lung disease by raising money for the BLF you can visit www.blf.org.uk/events, email events@blf.org.uk or call 020 7078 7912
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