Ten-year-old Amelia Wonnacott was inspired to raise money for the NHS after seeing day-to-day how hard her frontline staff parents were working.
And, having set a £100 target, the youngster has raised £430, which will be split between Attleborough Surgery, where mum Allison works, and Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT).
Amelia ran 1089 laps of her garden in Hethersett, just before the family moved to Old Buckenham, which was the distance of a marathon (26.2 miles).
Amelia took 10 days to complete her challenge and, despite a wobble halfway through where she didn’t think she could finish, she pushed on an was delighted to complete the distance.
Allison said: “It adds to an amazing experience for Amelia and has taught her so much about life and what you can do when you put your mind to something, even when you are 10-years-old.
“She could see how hard myself and her dad James, a policeman, were working and wanted to do something which would make a difference to frontline staff.”
The support from friends, family and neighbours helped spur Amelia on. “We kept seeing neighbours’ faces popping up over the fence encouraging her and then giving donations,” said Allison. “We have had amazing support from all sorts of people.”
Mental health is a subject close to Allison’s heart. “Amelia was premature when she was born at 33 weeks, at just 2lb 9oz. The whole pregnancy, emergency birth and care of a tiny baby threw me into chaos and the mental health teams who supported me were absolutely fantastic. I can’t thank them enough for the time, care and support they gave us as a new family. Mental health is not spoken about or supported enough, especially with the current crisis the pandemic has thrown people into.”
