Hundreds of Santa’s join forces to support our hospices
We have been spreading the festive spirit with our annual jolly Santa Fun Run since the end of November. Every Sunday morning, our festive endeavours took us across the south, where over 900 spirited individuals donned their bright red Santa suits and laced up their running shoes to embark on a jolly 5k family fun run.
The response has been remarkable with over an impressive £40,000 raised so far.
Our Santa Fun Run series explored the locales of Poole, Salisbury, and Winchester, with the Winchester Santa Fun Run proudly marking its 16th year and had become a popular annual tradition for many. The festivities kicked off in style with a Christmas-themed Zumba warm up led by the dynamic duo, Triff and Charlotte. Runners then set off on the 5k route, before crossing the finish line to be greeted with a festive flurry of foamy snow before proudly receiving their well-earned medals and mince pies.
These events wouldn’t be possible without the unwavering support of our incredible volunteers who generously dedicated their time and energy. From distributing Santa suits, marshalling along the route, capturing memorable moments, motivating the runners, assisting registration or handing out medals at the finish line, our volunteers played a vital role in creating a magical experience for all our participants.
Just some of our amazing volunteers
I took part in the Winchester Santa Fun Run to primarily raise money for a local charity, it gives me a huge buzz to be able to do this by doing something I enjoy so much.
To see 700 Santas assembled in Winchester ready to all run for a worthy cause was amazing. It was a great opportunity to be part of this event. Oh, and the Santa Santa Santa, HO HO HO was great fun too!
Count me in for next year's Fun Run!
Some of our amazing corporate partners
We also couldn’t make Santa Fun Run possible without the support of local businesses and our amazing corporate partners. Their contributions ranged from putting up signage along the route, providing delicious mince pies, covering the participants in snow and offering a helping hand on the day.
As our Christmas events have come to a close, we want to express our sincere gratitude to all those who contributed, participated, and supported us in spreading the joy of the festive season this winter. Thanks to your collective efforts, the funds raised have the potential to provide over 1700 hours of expert nursing care to seriously ill children and young adults. You have allowed the families in our care to make precious memories this Christmas.
It is such a fun event and gets you in the Christmas spirit. It is also great to do something for charity this time of year.
More photos from the Santa Fun Runs
It was a really well organised fun event and the community supporting the fundraising has been fantastic