Youngsters taking on the Great North Run in memory of South Tyneside knife crime victims
Youngsters are set to take on the Mini and Junior Great North Runs in honour of South Tyneside families devastated by knife crime.
A group of youngsters are preparing to take on the Great North Run for a South Tyneside-based charity that spreads awareness about the devastating impact of knife crime.
More than 70 children aged between three and 16-years-old will take part in the Mini and Junior Great North Runs on Saturday, September 12, in aid of the Glen Corner Trust.
The charity was established following the murder of 16-year-old Glen Corner in 2006, who stepped in to protect a friend who was being threatened by a knife, in Harton.
The children will also be running in memory of Deka Kennedy, 29, who died after being stabbed on Frederick Street in 2009, Gemma Finnigan, 24, who was killed in her home in Boldon in 2013 and David Charlton, 25, who lost his life after an attack on Stanhope Road, in 2012.
‘It is such an emotional time of the year’
Katie Wood, a trustee at the charity, helps to organise the Great North Run places for the youngsters - a role that her dad, Mark, did before be passed away in 2017.
The 23-year-old said: “Growing up, I knew how much the Great North Run and the Glen Corner Trust meant to my dad.
“When he died, a huge part of me died with him, but being able to do this – being able to carry on this legacy in his memory, it brings me so much closer to him.
“The Great North Run was always such a special event for him, and he inspired me so much to take up running as a kid, so to know his grand-daughter is now taking part in something he was so passionate about, and for the Trust giving me the opportunity to continue my dad’s fundraising for them, it means the world to me.
“It is such an emotional time of the year for me, my family and for the Trust – even more so this year, as I can’t take part myself due to being pregnant.
“But it’s also my favourite time of the year, as we get to raise all this money for a cause which was so close to my dad’s heart.
“I just hope I’m doing him proud.”
You can support The Glen Corner Trust runners at: https://www.gofundme.com/f/mini-run-the-glen-corner-trust-6msx4.