Holy Cross Hospital, Haslemere receives record donation from Boxing Day Run

The cheque for £5,200 was presented to Frances Campion-Smith, who is the charity’s Chief Executive by run organiser Matt Dellar.

The first Boxing Day Run took place in the mid 1980s and attracted just a handful of runners from Haslemere Border Athletics Club. After a few years, the rugby club took on the organisation of the run and introduced the custom of serving a pint of beer part way through. In 1997, the run organiser didn’t show up so Matt stepped in and has been organising it ever since.

Since the early days, the run has increased in popularity and this year it attracted over 530 participants.

Matt says: “The Boxing Day Run has become something of a fixture in the local calendar of events and is normally a sell-out. September is when I usually receive the first enquiries from people asking if the run is happening.

“What’s lovely about the Boxing Day Run is that you get all sorts of people entering for a variety of reasons. There are those who train specifically for it, there are runners who enter with the aim of beating their personal best and you also get family groups who enter every year because it has become a tradition – in fact I can think of one family whose girls were about 5 or 6 when they first entered and now, they are at university!”

Thanks to sponsorship from Wilson Electrical Distributors Ltd, The Sports Locker, Show Hire, Race Timing Solutions and Transform Landscapes, and support from the Devil’s Punchbowl Hotel, the Hogs Back Brewery and the National Trust, all proceeds from the run are donated to Holy Cross Hospital.

“I understand from Matt that the tradition of donating the proceeds of the run to Holy Cross dates back to the early 90s,” says Frances Campion-Smith.

She adds: “Over the years, the run has raised tens of thousands of pounds for Holy Cross which has been spent on items that improve our patients’ quality of life.

“Previous donations have contributed to a new minibus, sensory equipment, a pool hoist, improvements to the holiday home used by patients in Selsey and much, much more.

"This year, we intend to put the money towards improving our courtyard sensory garden, or making some adaptations to the treehouse so it can be used all year round by patients and their families.

“The cheque was a wonderful sum of money, and I thank all the runners, the sponsors, the volunteers who marshal the run, and of course Matt and his family for putting on such a magnificent event.”

Holy Cross Hospital in Haslemere is a charity that specialises in neurorehabilitation and provides care for people with complex neurological disabilities resulting from injuries or medical episodes. Further information can be found at www.holycross.org.uk.