Northampton woman running 2023 London Marathon in aid of grieving families

A Northampton woman is running the 2023 London Marathon in aid of a charity that supports grieving families.

Kerry Gibbs, a senior sales executive for BEB Consultancy in Duston, cannot wait to tick the run off her bucket list – especially after being rejected once before.

She said: “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and to be able to say I will have completed the London Marathon is an incredible thing.

“To be granted one of five Business Network International charity places is an honour.”

The charity Kerry is raising money for is the Bodie Hodges Foundation, which was set up in 2012 to support families bereaved of a child of any age and to promote organ donation.

Having networked with the charity and learnt a lot after meeting with them once a week, Kerry said: “Doing the marathon for a cause that’s close to your heart is so important.

“Grief is such a huge and horrible thing to go through, and it’s amazing that everything the foundation offers is free of charge – from the getaways and grievance counselling, to the sibling keepsake bags.”

Kerry has currently raised £255 of her £2,500 target, but hopes to exceed that by reaching £4,000 by the run in March 2023.

She hopes to organise an event at the start of next year to push towards this figure, with the help of local businesses, friends and family.

“My biggest competition is myself,” said Kerry. “I look back on runs and want to improve my times.

“I’m going to push and hold myself accountable so I don’t let people down.”

So far, Kerry is running two-to-three times a week as part of her training, and recently took part in Northampton’s 10k Race for Life.

She is running and training alongside two friends, who were also selected for the charity slots – Jon Lee from National Car Finder, and James Blacklaws from Commercial Finance.

However, as they are from Leicester and Nottingham, they have plans to meet on Friday mornings to train together.

Kerry said: “Having good friends, and their support and encouragement, around you definitely helps – especially as we are all novices and are basically starting from scratch.”

BEB Consultancy provides legal and contract support to businesses, and the team aspires to work with charities.

They launched a Start Up Business Academy a few months ago, which offers support to those who do not know where to begin when setting up a business.

The company also supports people or groups who want to set up charities, but have no idea about the legalities behind it – including the documentation, data protection and contracts.

To support local charities, BEB Consultancy is offering five local charities a space on their academy scheme to offer them the support they need.

Kerry said: “There is nothing like that out there, and it’s so difficult for people who aren’t business-inclined to switch their mindset to think this way – which is where we come in.

“It will be an invaluable and priceless opportunity.”

To support Kerry’s marathon fundraising, click here, and for anyone who wants to apply for the charity gifted spaces on the academy scheme, email [email protected].