A BARNSLEY woman is preparing to run a marathon to raise money in memory of her beloved brother who died suddenly aged just 48.
Anita Nicholson, whose family run Cannon Hall Farm, will be running the Manchester Marathon’s 26.2 miles on April 19 to raise money for the British Heart Foundation.
The 60-year-old’s older brother, Brian Major, a site manager and dad-of-two, died at home in 2009 after mistakenly believing he was suffering from indigestion.
He unfortunately passed away from a fatal heart attack suddenly, reading a newspaper at his dining table.
Anita said: “I turned 60 this year and wanted to do something to mark that milestone and to/ honour Brian as I’m so very aware that he never got the chance to enjoy all the/ years that I have and he is very dearly missed.
“Running for the British Heart Foundation makes me feel like I’m doing something positive/ through helping to fund research that can help others.
“The foundation has helped halve the number of people dying from heart and circulatory disease in the UK but sadly every day hundreds of people lose their lives.
“It’s only thanks to support from people like us that the BHF can create new treatments and discover new cures - £24 could pay for two hours of research by an early career scientist.
“I also have cousins, who I’m/ extremely close to, who have inherited heart muscle conditions.
“This marathon is for Brian/ and them.”
Anita’s no stranger to completing the distance, having ran the York Marathon in 2016 and the London Marathon a year later.
She has been training for 16 weeks and has received widespread support from the Cannon Hall Farm’s 700,000-strong Facebook audience and thousands of supporters - including the ‘On The Farm’ TV presenters Jules Hudson and Helen Skelton.
So far she’s raised more than £2,000 for the British Heart Foundation, smashing her initial £500 target.
Anita added: “I’ve always loved running and go out for social runs with my friends about/ three times a week.
“We don’t go particularly fast as we like to chat and set the world to rights.
“It’s all about the friendship and getting outside for me.
“Helen Skelton has done a training run with me and is very supportive.
“We always enjoy/ the filming as it adds to the sense of excitement about the farm and it’s great to have the/ presenters and crew showing so much interest in everything that’s going on.”
Angus O’Donnell, fundraising manager at the British Heart Foundation, paid tribute to Anita.
“We are so grateful to Anita for choosing to run the Manchester Marathon for the British Heart Foundation in recognition of the lifesaving research we fund throughout the UK.
“Through donating, you will help the BHF power groundbreaking cardiovascular research to save and improve lives, bring hope to families, and keep hearts beating across the UK.”
