Mayor of Charnwood to walk a marathon in aid of Marie Curie

The Mayor and his Mayoress and wife will take on the ambitious 26-mile High Peak Loop.

Cllr Paul Baines, the 48th Mayor of Charnwood will be leading a team to the Peak District later this month to take on the Peak District 2021: Pick Your Path challenge which is organised by Marie Curie, one of his chosen charities for 2021-22.

The Mayor and his Mayoress and wife, Dr Ning Baines will take on the ambitious 26-mile High Peak Loop. They will be joined on the marathon-distance walk by Laura Knights, the Council’s housing income officer.

Cllr Deborah Taylor, ward member for Anstey and Karen Widdowson, the Council’s democratic services manager and deputy monitoring officer will walk the Lathkill Loop which covers a shorter-but-challenging 11-mile route.

The Mayor of Charnwood said: “Although I enjoy walking up mountains and have been putting in a significant amount of training, this will be a huge challenge for me and the rest of the team. I’m pleased there are several of us taking part as we will be able to help each other when it starts to get tough.

“Marie Curie is a charity I hold dear to my heart and I’m hoping we will raise lots of money for an incredible cause. I would like to thank everyone who has already donated to the fundraising page for their generosity. There is still time for people to donate should they wish to.”

Mayoress of Charnwood, Dr Ning Baines added: “We’ve all got our t-shirts and are ready to take on the challenge. We’re putting in hours of training but the one thing we can’t control is the weather. However, come rain or shine, we’re ready to get going and complete the walk.”

Marie Curie provide expert care, guidance, and support to people living with a terminal illness, a charity which is close to the Mayor’s heart.

The walk will take place on Saturday July 24 and the team are hoping to raise a total of £2,000 for the good cause.

They’ve already raised around 60 percent of their target and would welcome any further support to help them reach the £2,000 mark.

Photo shows L-R: Karen Widdowson,the Council’s democratic services manager and deputy monitoring officer, Mayoress and Mayor of Charnwood, Dr Ning Baines and Cllr Paul Baines, Laura Knights, the Council's housing income officer and Cllr Deborah Taylor, ward member for Anstey.