On Sunday 4 August, our Marketing, PR and Social Media Director, Ellen Cole took on the mammoth challenge of walking and running the York 10k to raise much-needed funds for The Island – a local charity that provides mentoring services to York children experiencing difficulties with their mental, emotional and social wellbeing.

Running has never been Ellen’s strongest point, however, she was able to manage 3k before she took the decision to embark on a fast walk to the finishing line.

It was a warm day with no breeze so it wasn’t an easy task, however, Ellen kept going and reached the finishing line at 1hr 41 minutes. Ellen was pleased to see that she had taken five minutes off her time since she last did a 10k, furthermore, she was over the moon to discover that she reached her £250 target for The Island.

Ellen says, “I wish I could have run 5k, however, I’m delighted to have reached my target and to have taken five minutes off my time. I would like to thank my clients, family and friends for donating towards my fundraising efforts as their support has really helped keep me motivated. I really enjoyed being part of the city-wide event, however, I think I will stick with yoga and pilates!”

The money Ellen raised during the York 10k will guarantee 26 mentoring sessions for a vulnerable child needing to access The Island’s services to enhance their confidence, self-esteem and resilience levels.

Passionate about people and wildlife, giving back through business is really important to us. We hope to continue to do our good work in the community to improve the lives of all creatures great and small. Click here to view our corporate responsibility.