Claire's Bermuda Triangle Half Marathon Challenge - Jan 2025

27 February 2025 - I have just transferred the total raised of $3500 to Friends of Hospice, Agape House, in Kevin's memory. I am delighted to have raised enough so that Kevin's name will be memorialised at the new facility on their "wall of hearts" for donations over $2500...which was always my goal. So, thank you so much for all your kind and generous donations in making that happen. If this is your first timing visiting my fund raising page please do not donate here but directly to Friends of Hospice and select "In Memory" in the drop down options when asked why you are donating. You will then be required to add some comments so please put Kevin's name there - Kevin Thornton. Thank you and lots of love to you all, Claire...xxx

https://friendsofhospice.bm/donate/

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Thank you for visiting my page - please read to the end as there is information on how to avoid the fees involved with donating.

For those of you who don't know - and I don't think there's many - I lived in Bermuda for 19 years and the island was, and still is, a big part of my life.

I am raising money for Bermuda's only hospice, Agape House, where someone very special to me spent time before he sadly passed away.

I have given myself my biggest running challenge so far and that is to complete The Bermuda Triangle Half Marathon Challenge - 3 races in 3 days - as part of International Race Weekend.

17/01/25 - Front Street Mile

18/01/25 - 10K

19/01/25 - Half Marathon

Kevin's story....

In June 2019 my very close friend, and ex-boyfriend, was diagnosed with an aggressive stage 4 brain cancer. When I found out about Kevin's diagnosis, I didn't give it a second thought and flew out to Boston, USA where he was receiving intense radiation following brain surgery to remove the tumour. I then spent as much time as possible in Bermuda supporting Kevin with his family and other close friends through this awful illness. Sadly, the cancer was too much for Kevin and he passed away on 25th May 2021 in his home town of Tunbridge Wells, UK.

During this time I decided I wanted to do something to raise money for the Brain Tumour Charity so signed up to run the Brighton Marathon in April 2020. I trained hard and it was going well. Then just before the marathon, COVID happened and the whole world changed. The 2020 marathon was cancelled and my place was deferred to 2021. The 2021 marathon was then postponed from April to September. By this time I wasn't running as much and so I cancelled my place completely. Rest assured all the money that was very generously donated was given to the Brain Tumour Charity but I have always felt bad that I never actually did anything for it.

And so came the idea of running The Bermuda Triangle Half Marathon Challenge in 2025 as a challenge for myself and also to raise money for Agape House, Bermuda's only hospice, where Kevin spent time as well as my cousin's husband, my Aunt and another very dear friend before they passed away.

Thank you for taking time to read this (long!) message and thank you in advance for any contributions, they will be greatly received and very much appreciated. I will donate them in Kevin's name and memory when I am in Bermuda.

However, please note: "the major fundraising websites are cashing in on kindness by automatically adding 'tips' for themselves on top of charitable donations– by as much as 20 per cent. Three years ago, Just Giving was levying 15 per cent on donations as an automatic voluntary tip, GoFundMe added 12.5 per cent and Crowdfunder 15 per cent" - I do not expect anyone to have to pay a "tip" to donate to my cause so if you are able to donate, underneath your donation amount there is a link that says "enter custom tip", click on this and then you can change the amount to zero and continue with the payment.

Thank you and lots of love to you all...Xx