Ben decided to run the Color Run for Paintings in Hospitals. Read on to find out why, how and what you can do to get involved.

Why this?

I wanted to do something to make a difference, so I decided to sign up to a challenge event and began looking to see what was out there. I felt I needed to pick something that would be both a little achievement in itself and also something really apt for Paintings in Hospitals. I chose to run the 5K London Color Run – which I felt reflected the ethos and the colour that the charity bring into people’s lives. It is essentially running around an iconic venue whilst being blasted with coloured paints and foam!

Planning for the race

When I signed up, the 5K seemed a long way off, so training didn’t start as early as it should have! I had run a 5K for local charities in Tower Hamlets during 2011 and 2010… but I hadn’t realised I could get so unfit in six years – it was great to have Paintings in Hospitals as my motivation. The July 2017 London Color Run was held by Wembley stadium and the idea of running alongside the famous arch whilst being splattered with colour soon attracted the attention of friends and colleagues who wanted to know more. The race organisers were flexible about you running as a team, or by yourself. I managed to convince our IT guy Sam from Newable Digital, and our mutual friend Chris (both far more experienced and fitter runners) to join me, (and then Sam’s four year old son Jake joined us too!)

With our team in place we set about getting sponsorship from friends and family – which was really easy to do online, with the money going directly to the charity as and when it was donated, and many generous supporters offering to Gift Aid their eligible donations too!

The Team having a pre-race lunch

The race

We set off with a batch of runners and gradually started getting caked in rainbow colours. We made a pretty good time considering the chaos of running through so much paint dust in huge crowds! I was very impressed with Sam who towed his son 5km on a scooter! We crossed the line together as a team and reached our goal.

Get involved

It is great doing a run for a smaller charity like Paintings in Hospitals. When you raise money for an organisation like this, you know much more of it will reach the front line and help people almost immediately. We raised £1K in one afternoon! It is clear that without Government support, the charity could not continue its unique and important work without the generosity of the people that sponsored me. They directly supported Paintings in Hospitals to help patients, service users and carers across the UK have a better experience through art.

If you're like Ben and want to make a contribution to Paintings in Hospitals through a run or activity like this, fundraise for us today. You can get in touch with us directly or you can go straight to our Donate page, where (if you click the Fundraise button) you can set up your own campaign page to share with family and friends!