A Shropshire schoolboy has taken on a 140-mile running challenge in memory of the sister he never had the chance to meet.
Callum Hilditch of Halfway House is running the distance from Hope House children’s hospice, near Oswestry to Tŷ Gobaith in Conwy.
Callum Hilditch of Halfway House, near Shrewsbury, is running the distance from Hope House children’s hospice, near Oswestry, to Tŷ Gobaith in Conwy, and back, over three months – a total distance of 140 miles.
So far, he’s covered more than half the distance and is on track to raise £400 for the charity which supports children with life-threatening conditions and their families.
Callum, aged 14, is a Year Nine pupil at Mary Webb School, Pontesbury. He has no previous running experience. However, he was keen to take on the feat to recognise how the hospice supported his mum after the loss of his unborn sister, who he named Poppet.
His Mum Jessica said: “Callum’s been running four miles, three times a week, through some miserable weather. I’m so proud of him.
“Hope House is very personal to me. I gave birth to a sleeping baby in 2015 when Callum was just eight years old.
“The counselling I received through Hope House helped me through an incredibly tough time.
“At my 20-week scan, it was shown that my baby had two rare conditions that affected her heart and development. I lost her when I was 28 weeks pregnant on 12th March 2015.”
The counselling support at Hope House helped Jessica through the grief of losing her daughter, who was named Poppet by brother Callum.
“The grief of losing my unborn baby was horrendous and finding a counsellor who I felt comfortable with and could talk to freely had a major impact on getting my life back,” she said.
Jessica has taken part in previous charity events for Hope House.
She said: “I wanted to give something back to Hope House. If Poppet had been born she would probably have also needed Hope House’s services. I wanted to give back to other families who need the hospice’s support.”
Callum, who is better known for his drumming and tap-dancing skills, has been logging his runs on running app Strava. He can also use the charity challenge as part of his Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
Hope House area fundraiser Bekki Fardoe said: “We are grateful to Callum and his family for their support. We’re enjoying following his progress on his Facebook page and are so impressed with his running and fundraising efforts. Hopefully he’ll be able to enjoy running in some drier spring weather before he completes his challenge next month.
“Personal fundraising challenges like Callum’s mean the world to us, and without them we wouldn’t be here for the local families that really need us.”
If you can help sponsor Callum in his challenge then visit hopehouse.org.uk/callums-memory-run.
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