Publish date: 30 September 2023
The Great North weekend
Over two days in September, the North East hosted the biggest kids' running event in Britain and the biggest half marathon in the world.
The Mini and Junior Great North Runs took place on what was called "Super Saturday", in honour of Sir Mo Farah who was competing in the Great North Run the next day.
10,000 children participated in races along Newcastle's Quayside, on what turned out to be a scorcher of a day!
The next day couldn't have been more different and thunderstorms were predicted when 60,000 runners lined up for the 42nd Great North Run.
Amidst unprecedented weather conditions, runners took on the famous route from Newcastle to South Shields - including Sir Mo in his last competitive race.
Team County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust Charity
County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust were thrilled to be supporting our biggest team of charity runners yet.
Whether it was blazing sunshine or thunder and lightning, our 30 runners braved the elements to raise over £10,000 for our NHS charity.
Every one of our runners is a hero and have each made a difference to patients across Country Durham and Darlington. Here are three of their stories:
The Mini runner
Six year old Darcey Miller got the weekend off to the perfect start, running for CDDFT in the Mini Great North Run on Super Saturday.
This super star runner took on the 1.2km course around Newcastle's Quayside and raised an amazing £500 - well done Darcey!
"Darcey is an absolute diamond, she so wanted to help our children's wards in CDDFT" Danielle, Darcey's mum
The dragon
The County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust team was lucky enough to have its own dragon - a BBC Dragon that is!
County Durham entrepreneur, founder of Crafters Companion and star of Dragon's Den, the wonderful Sara Davies combined her love of running with providing support for our NHS Charity, raising over £900 in the process.
"We have all had to use our wonderful NHS service at some point in our lives and our local trusts have such a positive impact on so many families in the community" - Sara Davies
The record-breaker: a tribute to Bill Cooksey
At 102 years old, Bill Cooksey from Newton Aycliffe, County Durham became the oldest person ever to complete a half-marathon.
The inspirational RAF veteran celebrated the 75th year of the NHS with this record-breaking achievement and raised over £1,900 for County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust Charity.
"I am so incredibly proud of our NHS, they have been there since after the war, I remember it being launched, it has taken care of me and my family and we should all be proud of it, it is the backbone of our great nation." - Bill Cooksey
The Great North Run wasn't Bill's first fundraising challenge: in 2021, he raised almost £3,000 for County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust Charity by walking 100 miles in 10 days!
Bill sadly passed away in November 2023 and County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust Charity are honoured to have had his support over the years.
Through to his fundraising activities, Bill provided vital support for patient care and experience across County Durham and Darlington.
Thankyou Bill, a true local hero.
Enhancing patient care across our hospitals and communities
All the money raised by our inspirational runners will go towards enhancing patient care and wellbeing within our local NHS.
On behalf of everyone here at County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust we want to say a huge THANKYOU.
Feeling inspired? Join the 2024 team!
We would be proud to have you on our NHS Charity team for next year's Great North Run.
To secure your place, get in touch today by email cddft.charity@nhs.net, give us a call on 01325 743781 or drop us a DM on one of our social media channels.
