Terry Hughes pounding the tarmac
BELLEEK businessman, Terry Hughes, is taking on a marathon charity challenge later this month as he runs from Donegal to Dublin.
The proprietor of TJ Hughes Service Station on the Belleek-Ballyshannon border, is taking on the huge task of making his way to Dublin, running a marathon a day over five days.
Terry will set off on Wednesday, October 26th and conclude his huge challenge by running the Dublin Marathon the following Monday, in a bid to raise €10,000 (£9,000) for the Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation.
The charity provides much needed nursing care and direct funding to families of children from birth to four years old with severe neurological development issues throughout Ireland, enabling them to take a break from the daily marathon of caring for their sick child.
Terry’s route will take him to Florencecourt, then onto Cavan, Kells, Dunboyne before finishing up in Dublin. Training everyday, both on the roads and in the gym, Terry says running the five marathons in five days is a huge physical challenge.
“I’ll certainly not have too many opportunities to do something like this in the future, but I’m delighted that I’ll have some local runners accompanying me on stretches along the route, and I’ll have a volunteers to cycle a rickshaw to carry all the essentials along the way.”
“The Jack and Jill Foundation is a charity which is special to me. I was lucky enough to learn more about it at a conference and it really struck a chord with me that there’s no state support available for children born with severe development issues – my own child has diabetes and in comparison we have all the support in the world – so I felt it was important to do my bit,” he said.
Terry has already held a fundraising day for Jack & Jill and he says local people were really supportive and very generous. He is also hosting a Charity Bingo afternoon in Star Bingo, Bundoran this Saturday, October 15th at 4pm and an in store coffee morning on Saturday, October 22nd at Hughes Service Station.
“I still have some way to go to hit the target, so I urge everyone to dig deep and donate what they can to help me support this fantastic cause,” he added.
Jack & Jill CEO, Jonathan Irwin, is delighted with Terry’s huge challenge.
“One marathon is enough for most people, but Terry is doing five, and I have to take my hat off to him for that!
It is champions like Terry who are willing to get out and run to support us that keep Jack & Jill going every year. We hope the road stretches out ahead of him and there’s a gentle wind on his back.”
If you would like to make a donation, please visit Terry’s Everyday Hero fundraising page at bit.ly/5Marathons5Days or you can make a donation in store. You can also follow Terry’s story on the T.J. Hughes, Service Station Facebook page @TJHughesBelleek.
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