Woodley women run Reading Half marathon to honour Mrs Rainbow
A GROUP of Woodley women are lacing up their trainers for the Reading Half Marathon.
On Sunday, November 7, Zoe Watkiss, Esta McArthur, Hollie Ashley, Steph Benham and Claire will run for a cause close to their hearts.
The group will be taking on the 13.1 mile distance in aid of Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent Hospice, where Zoe’s mum, Nina, received care before she died in August 2019, aged 56.
Nina worked at St Dominic Savio Catholic Primary School in Woodley for more than 20 years and was affectionately called “Mrs Rainbow” because of her cheery personality and love of wearing bright colours.
The group have named their team “Follow the Run-bow” in honour of her nickname.
Zoe, 29, said: “We were very fortunate that my mum was able to go to Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent Hospice, where they cared for her so well in her last weeks.
“My mum described the nurses as angels, and despite coming to the end of her life, she was happy and content to be in such a lovely place.”
Zoe said staff went above and beyond to organise for her to visit a school assembly which was dedicated to her.
“[They] even organised a rainbow-themed party in her room with all of her work friends,” Zoe added.
“We will be forever grateful and I’m taking on this challenge to thank them for everything they did for us.
“I will continue to do what I can to raise money for the hospice and I hope that it helps other families going through difficult times.”
The team were originally due to run the Reading Half Marathon in April last year.
Since then, the team has grown further with the arrival of two babies — Quincy (1) and Francis (4 months) — who will
be there to support their mums on race day.
Esta said: “We were all doing really well with our training, but obviously covid has been a challenge, and some of us have had babies, so we’re not as physically fit as we were.
“We’re not putting pressure on ourselves and doing it competitively like we were before; we’ll just be really pleased to get over the finish line and raise money for a great cause.”
Alison Edwards, community fundraising manager at Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent Hospice, said: “It’s been a long time since Zoe and her friends set themselves this brilliant challenge, and we’re so grateful for their continued commitment to raise funds for our hospice. There is no doubt that Nina would be extremely proud of them all, and we can’t wait to cheer them on on the day.”
The team have raised more than £2,500 so far.