Father and daughter going extra mile to fight disease
A father and daughter are going the extra mile to raise funds to help tackle a disease they have been affected by.
Andy and Sophie Matthews have been running 10 kilometres a day for seven days to raise money for Motor Neurone Disease research.
Andy has been running around Wolverhampton, while 22-year-old Sophie has been running around Exeter, where she is at university, after being inspired by Rugby League player Kevin Sinfield's seven marathons in seven days.
The pair took on the lung-busting challenge for the Motor Neurone Disease Association (MNDA) as a tribute to the 50-year-old's mother Shirley, who passed away with the disease in December 2013.
Andy said: "My mother passed away around Christmas time after being diagnosed in February and after seeing what Kevin Sinfield did, the idea of seven in seven just fit in for us.
"With the national lockdown, it seemed the right time to do it as it's a good way to keep exercising and gives you a nice release, as well as helping raise funds for a good cause."
Mr Matthews said he had seen the effects of the disease close up, with his mother losing all motor functions, including in her throat which stopped her being able to speak, as the disease took hold.
Target
He also said that despite the lockdown and the inclement weather, he and Sophie aimed to complete their challenge this week.
Motor Neurone Disease has no cure at present and Mr Matthews said that by doing the challenge, he hoped he and his daughter, who have raised £1,500 so far, could do their bit to help fund further research.
He said: "It's brilliant to be able to do this with Sophie as although she's still down at university, we've managed to catch up in the evening and continue to drive each other on.
"I really hope we can inspire people to do charity challenges like this as I was really inspired by Kevin Sinfield and other fundraisers and the work they do.
"Two years ago, I couldn't run a bath, but I'm really enjoying the running and it's great to use my routine to help others."
To find out more and to make a donation to the challenge, email andy.matthews@hoppe.com
