A ten-year-old girl has set off on a run from Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise money for elderly dementia patients who live near her.
What started as a fun way to keep fit for Mia Richardson, a pupil at St John’s Catholic Primary School in Camborne, has turned into a way of raising vital funds for Blackwood care home, just down the road from where she lives.
Of course while Mia will be covering the length of the country she won't actually be leaving her house.
She will be completing the 1,347.1km on a cross-trainer in her house and has already got as far as Bristol. She hopes to reach her Scottish goal by June 30.
Mia’s mum, Bernie, has worked as a carer for Cornwall Care for six years and currently spends more than 40 hours a week helping to keep Blackwood’s vulnerable residents safe. Prior to coronavirus lockdown restrictions, Mia also visited the home regularly.
Her dad Dan, who has been furloughed from his job as a shop manager in Truro, said: “She enjoys going in and sitting with residents.
“She has raised money for them in the past by making cupcakes but is now set on the idea of being able to help buy the home a Magic Table. We launched a JustGiving page last night and nearly £200 has already been donated.”
Before the pandemic, Mia enjoyed going to the local gym with her mum. As that's not possible at the moment, using the cross trainer is helping her keep fit.
“We do home schooling in the morning and exercise around lunchtime,” said Dan. “The cross trainer is hard work so whilst Mia is on that I run up and down the stairs. We certainly cover some miles between us!”
Cornwall Care is a charity that looks after more than 650 vulnerable people in 16 homes across the county, plus another 500 in the community.
Blackwood specialises in providing residential dementia care and is a two-minute walk from where the Richardson family live.
“I briefly met ‘SpeedoMick’ when he came through Truro and felt very inspired by what he was doing,” said Dan. “Mia will run the same distance as him – but in the comfort and warmth of our own home.”
Anyone can contribute to Mia’s fundraising effort through her fundraising page www.justgiving.com/fundraising/miarichardson
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here