Santas get running for dementia cause
Dorney: Hundreds of Father Christmases take on 5k for ADS charity
Christmas came to Dorney Lake on Sunday as hundreds of Santas strapped on their running boots and completed a 5k for charity.
Organised by Alzheimers Dementia Support (ADS), the event is the largest fundraiser for the charity, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary.
Mayor of the Royal Borough, Councillor
John Story, was on hand to open proceedings as festive runners braved the cold at the lake.
The charity’s patron Sue Holderness joined them for the day, helping with judging and handing out the prizes for the fastest runners.
First past the post was Johnathan Kew in 18 minutes and 59 seconds.
Tegan Harris, who wrote the book ‘A Kid's Guide to Dementia’ also ran for ADS after helping to set up at the venue.
Before the race started, families with children visited Santa’s grotto where they had a short chat with Santa and received a small gift.
Furthermore, the ‘SElfie’ station where participants took a fun photo with a huge 4m inflatable Santa was also very popular.
There were special
competitions for bestdressed team, bestdressed wheels, bestdressed dog and bestdressed family.
Among the volunteers helping on the day were nine cadets and two staff members from the 155 Maidenhead Squadron ATC Air Cadets. They kept an eye on the running course, encouraged the participants and made sure that everyone was safe.
Nysa Harris, director of operations at ADS, said: “This is a wonderful family event that raises both awareness and funding [for the charity].
“We are very grateful to the mayor of the Royal Borough, Cllr John Story, for opening the event, to all who took part, as well as those who donated prizes and helped on the day.”
Schools can still register to participate on their own premises during December in the ‘Santa Comes to Your School’ competition.
For more details, contact santa@alzheimers dementiasupport.co.uk