On course for 150 miles in aid of Bethesda

John has been a keen runner for the last 35 years and now will put his fitness to the test for the Bethesda fundraiser.

John plans to tackle the 150 mile stretch over 4-5 days and I will be running approximately 30 miles per day.

He said: “I will be starting from Castlebay on Tuesday 29th August and running north through Barra, Eriskay, S. Uist, Benbecula, N. Uist and then on to Harris and Lewis.”

The former Maryhill (Stornoway) resident, who now lives in Dalgety Bay, is 60 this year but still has plenty to give.

He added: ““I feel very privileged to be able to undertake such a run and am very passionate about the cause.

“I witnessed at first hand the wonderful work of the hospice with both my father-in-law (Ernie Hughson) and father (John O’Connor) both having received end of life care at Bethesda.

“It is a marvellous facility and one the Islands I know, are rightly proud of. I have opened a Just Giving sponsorship page - www.justgiving.com/John-OConnor2 in the hope of being able to raise some much needed funds for this amazing place. Any donation, large or small will be gratefully received and put to good use.

“Needless to say I am a keen runner, having started my running career at the Nicolson Institute in the 1970s, doing the Mossend runs during PE classes and eventually moving on to do many marathons over the past 35 years. I would also welcome any runners who would like to join me for all or part of the route. Please get in touch if you would like to join in at: [email protected].