A FORMER Willowbrook hospice staffer is just under a week away from completing the London marathon, raising much-needed funds to help the charity continue their "amazing" care.
Despite never running a marathon before - and her only competitive race being a 5k - Melissa Kenny set herself the ambitious target to raise money for the charity which has really struggled during the pandemic.
Willowbrook, based on Portico Lane, Prescot, are a charity which provides special care for people at the end of their life or with terminal illnesses.
After working at the hospice for seven years, Melissa understands how much their work helps people in the community and supports grieving families through particularly difficult periods.
Melissa, from Rainhill, said: "Impossible is nothing to Willowbrook. They are just amazing and do everything they can to deliver the best quality of life to their patients.
"I've seen first hand how much their work affects people in the community and how far this money goes in helping people."
Such specialised treatment, however, is a costly business and is said to cost Willowbrook £5 million a year to provide.
During the pandemic, this problem became exponentially more difficult as their patient list and realm of care expanded at a time when people were unable to raise desperately needed funds.
The 26-year-old explained that the charity "struggled so much" during lockdown and were desperate for essential PPE for patients as well as funds to help them with their care.
Nevertheless, in awe of the work of her colleagues during this intensely difficult period, Melissa decided to apply for a charity place at the London marathon and has been focused on this goal ever since.
Although she has not ran a competitive race further than 5k, Melissa said she is "feeling quite strong" for the marathon after being given a 16-week training programme from her gym and being sponsored through physio sessions at Ranson's Rehabilitation.
While this training has been both physically and mentally demanding, Melissa is quietly confident of her four hour target.
She added: "My target is to complete the run in four hours and hopefully raise £2000, but I'm hoping to raise as much money as possible.
"It's just my opportunity to give something back to Willowbrook and its vital in the future that people keep donating so they can carry on with their amazing care."
Already awash with good luck messages and raising over £1400, it is clear that the community is rooting for Melissa and supportive of her cause.
To donate to Melissa's fundraiser, visit this link
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