Cancer is happening right now, which is why I'm taking part in a Race for Life Pretty Muddy to raise money and save lives which is I find myself in this position. I have willingly(?!) volunteered to take part in a 5k in memory of my dad but not just any old 5k, oh no! I am partaking in a MUDDY 5k along with my lovely daughter, Cathy Thomson. I have not run for years, the most energetic thing I have done in the past few years is an evening stroll or a gentle bike ride round the quiet lanes of Suffolk yet here I am, doing a 5k. I might have to invest in some trainers...and some lycra (only kidding on the lycra front). Cathy has promised to stay with me, most likely so she can eke revenge for all those times I drag her training when she was a kid. But why are we doing this? We are doing it in memory of our loving dad, granddad and great granddad who died from mesothelioma in March 2018.

As a family we have recently witnessed, first hand, cancer and all that entails. Dad worked briefly with asbestos in his teens and late last year, at the age of 78, was diagnosed with mesothelioma, it was a brutal cancer and sadly he died two weeks ago in St.John's hospice, Bedfordshire. Dad made a huge impact on so many lives in the charity sector and in his personal life and to the very last put everyone else ahead of himself so now, in his memory, we would like to pay something back into the fight against cancer.

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