This week marks Armed Forces Week, an important entry in the calendar for the Armed Forces community. This national week involves a series of events to celebrate and recognise the contribution of men and women through their service in the British Armed Forces.
TCS London Marathon 2022: Matt Hale
As well as taking place during Armed Forces Week, Friday 24 June also marks 100 days until I run the 2022 TCS London Marathon on 2 October 2022. I’m running the marathon to raise money for ABF The Soldiers’ Charity.
The Military Department at Hugh James, and the firm as a whole, have supported The Soldiers’ Charity for a number of years, building close ties. The Soldiers’ Charity does vital work in ensuring that soldiers, veterans and their families have lifetime access to a support system.
Some of the many areas in which The Soldiers’ Charity is committed to include employment, education and training, elderly care, housing, mobility and well-being of the Army family. Be it helping homeless veterans move into a new property, or providing re-training courses for a new career, The Soldiers’ Charity is there to help.
Running the London Marathon has been a lifetime ambition of mine. I have previously entered the general ballot (without success) on four separate occasions, so the opportunity to run the Marathon for The Soldiers’ Charity is one that I am extremely grateful for and excited about.
I have previously run several Cardiff Half Marathons, with my last two raising money for The Soldiers’ Charity, so taking on a full marathon felt like the next logical step.
With the race drawing nearer at a startling pace, I am pleased to say that training is going to plan, and I hope to inch as close as I can to the magic 26.2 miles by the time October rolls around.
Military Department Charity Walk: 17 June 2022
The Military department at Hugh James have long established links with The Soldiers’ Charity and attend/ organise events throughout the year to provide support for this great cause.
To help raise further funds for The Soldiers’ Charity, through my marathon sponsorship page, an 11-mile charity walk was organised by my colleague, Kevin McCarthy, around the Merthyr area on 17 June. Highlights of the route included sections of the Taff Fechan and Taff Trails as well as the Cefn Coed Viaduct.
Unbeknownst to us whilst planning the walk, it became apparent that we had managed to select the hottest day of the year, so far, to undertake this challenge. With temperatures hovering around 25°C all day, it meant that sun cream and an adequate water supply were absolute necessities!
Kevin had (thankfully) included a stop for lunch in his route plan, at the Red Cow pub. In the week leading up to the walk, the staff at the Red Cow very kindly agreed to display a charity bucket for The Soldiers’ Charity.
Despite the challenges presented by the unusually hot conditions, and some particularly steep hills, we successfully completed the walk. The money raised both by the Military department and the bucket collection has helped me move closer to my fundraising target of £2,000.00, which I hope to reach by October.
Should you wish to donate to a fundraising page for The Soldiers’ Charity, they would be greatly appreciated.
