Belarus team in Soligorsk
It was an early start! After 17 months of no in-person events, it was quite a novelty to be loading the car and heading to a sports stadium with all our gear in tow – banners, bunting, leaflets and more.
Charities all over north London were all doing the same and how great it was to be coming together again to showcase and support the great work being done across the Jewish community for amazing causes after such a long time of being in hibernation. The Maccabi GB Community Fun Run was back and we were delighted to be a part of the action.
Jack Baum and Elaine Collins TTP manning the event stall
The setting was the StoneX Sports stadium in Mill Hill, north London and a huge amount of planning had gone into ensuring that the event was Covid safe, all outdoors with lots of activities for children and adults alike. By 8:30am we were in place and ready for action. Our stall was set and there was even time for a coffee and some chat. Not for long though as we had to make sure our sportswomen were limbered, stretched and ready for the challenge ahead.
In London, Michelle Rose was our distance champion, running 10km across the hard going grassy terrain. No mean feat! Hard on her heels, Gillian Gruder set out on the 5km walk as Hannah Ryder and Patrick Halpin set off on their 5km run in Liverpool! Meanwhile, in Soligorsk, south of Minsk, our Belarus team set off on a half marathon – 21km (click to watch) and in the north of the country, the Polotsk Jewish community, unbeknownst to us, wanted in on the action, donned their trainers and played their part too. Over £2000 has been raised so far and we are delighted.
In the ethos of ‘togetherness’ which is our mantra, we strive to ensure that those we are working to support play an integral and active role. It is important that our beneficiaries are active participants, not expectant recipients, and it is events such as this where everyone can play their part. This event is a real example of a community collaboration where everyone can feel empowered and take ownership! We just love it. Watch our short film here made in Belarus especially for the day!
We cannot thank the runners and walkers enough for all their efforts and of course thank you to those who donated. The donation pages are still open so if you would like to sponsor here’s how:
To sponsor Michelle click here
To sponsor the team in Belarus, click here
To sponsor Hannah and Patrick, click here
Thank you to our amazing volunteers Jack Baum and Elaine Collins for manning our charity stall and always being the #dreamteam!
If you would like to participate in next year’s Maccabi Community Fun Run, by running, walking or volunteering – wherever you are in the world, please contact us at [email protected]
