1 Apr 2026 Community

Family fundraiser runs 100km each to give back to The Kirkwood

A determined group of family and friends have raised funds for The Kirkwood by each completing an incredible 100km running challenge across a single month, inspired by the care their loved ones received. 

Hanna, Lewis, Bethan and Bobbie took on the challenge while balancing full-time work and personal commitments, all while navigating an incredibly difficult period of loss for their family. They have so far raised an incredible £1,420 and you can see their fundraising page HERE. It will be open until the 26th April if you want to donate to their cause.  

Explaining the motivation behind the fundraiser, Bethan Peace said: “We wanted to raise money for The Kirkwood by doing our own challenge. We ran 100km each in June for MND Association and decided to repeat this for The Kirkwood in March. There was me, my sister, my brother and my sister's friend, who each ran 100km across the month to raise money. We did some runs together, and some runs on our own, all tracked on our watches.” 

Over the past year, The Kirkwood has supported the family through community care at home, providing vital support during the most challenging of times. Bethan added, “Over the past year, The Kirkwood supported our family with care at home during an incredibly difficult time. We sadly lost three loved ones: our brother-in-law, Tim Hudson, our grandad, Anthony Jones, and our grandma, Barbara Jones.  While our mum took on the role of providing all of the day-to-day care and support at home, The Kirkwood was there to make sure she had everything she needed. The nurses offered guidance, reassurance, and practical help, and were always at the end of the phone whenever she needed advice or support. That constant presence gave us real comfort and strength.  In the past, our great grandma also stayed at The Kirkwood, so it has supported our family across generations.” 

Despite the emotional weight of their experiences, the group showed incredible resilience and determination to complete the challenge: “We completed our challenge, we are all feeling very proud of ourselves, managing to do this on top of life's commitments and working full time, as well as managing the grief that we feel. The Kirkwood really helped us when we needed them, and we hope that our money goes towards them being able to provide that support to another family in need that will appreciate it just as much as we did.” 

Their connection to The Kirkwood extends beyond the care they received, with the family also finding comfort through the charity’s remembrance events. Bethan said, “The Kirkwood is incredibly important to us. We attended the Light Up a Life service, and it really brings people together - even those who may not have used The Kirkwood directly - to remember and celebrate loved ones in a shared, supportive environment. When we were there, we felt part of a community, surrounded by others who had experienced similar losses. It helped us feel less alone and truly supported by the warmth and care around us.” 

The family say their fundraising is just one way of giving back to a charity that supported them through so much.  Bethan added: “Thank you so much to The Kirkwood for the umbrella of support that they provided at such a difficult time in our lives. We appreciate it more than we can say, and this is just our own little way of trying to give back for the help that you gave. I am sure this won't be the last fundraiser we do for The Kirkwood.” 

Every pound raised will help The Kirkwood continue to provide specialist care and support to patients and families across Kirklees when they need it most.