Runners and church members put their best foot forward for charity as they joined a fundraising walk and run to support Hope for Justice.
On two consecutive days, a 10k walk and 10k run were held in Chorley, Lancashire, to raise funds for the charity and to bring much-needed focus on the issue of human trafficking.
Organiser, Carl Wingfield, from Blackburn, is a member of Valley Church, one of Hope for Justice’s key partners. Every year the church in Bamber Bridge hosts a week of events to support our global work to end modern slavery. This year, alongside Carl’s 10k events, the church hosted a Freedom Week in their coffee shop and a quiz.
Carl, who is in his fifth year of fundraising for Hope for Justice, said: “I will continue to organise events for this charity because I believe the issue of modern slavery is shockingly close to where we live and is happening unseen in our communities.”
About 45 people participated across the two 10k events, with ages ranging from five to 60. The run took place on Saturday 17th May, with the walk happening the following day to coincide with Valley Church’s Hope Sunday.
Participants included churchgoers, members of a local running group and three of Carl’s work colleagues at Johnson Matthey, sustainable technologies company.
Runners set off from the Malthouse Farm pub in Chorley at 9am and took a rural route to Heapey reservoirs and White Coppice, skirting the edge of Anglezarke dam before returning to the pub for refreshments.
The walk on Sunday started at 1.30pm from Rivington Brewery Co. Participants headed to Rivington Pike, taking in the sights of the gardens, monuments and lake.
Carl said: “Reaching the pike was quite an uphill but definitely worth the views. The ice cream on the way back down was also well deserved. The weather on both days was ideal for the events. One of the church members hadn’t done a 10k before and was really happy she’d managed the distance.”
Johnson Matthey kindly match-funded the amount that was raised on the 10k walk and run.
Thanks to generous givers, the events raised more than £1,500 for Hope for Justice as well as raising vital awareness within the church and local community about the issue of modern slavery. Participants and visitors to the café were equipped with knowledge about how to spot the signs of exploitation. Church members prayed for survivors, and also wrote Bible verses and encouraging messages for our beneficiaries.
