THREE brothers have vowed to cross the finish line of the Paris Marathon together to honour their father’s dedication to fighting poverty in Colchester.
Chris Smith, 23, and twin brothers, Alex and Matt, 21, lost their father Jeremy, 55, after a three-month battle with lung cancer just before Christmas in 2014.
Since deciding to run last spring the trio have nearly doubled their £3,000 fundraising goal – it is now at £5,036 – for the Trussell Trust, a national poverty charity with a network of 400 foodbanks including Colchester Foodbank.
Jeremy, a former news editor for Reuters UK, became ill soon after he retired at 53, but continued to volunteer with the Foodbank because he was driven to contribute to his home town.
Alex, a Zoology student at Leeds University, said: “Our dad was a warm and gentle giant who embraced people from all walks of life.
“As much as our dad’s diagnosis was a shock, we’d also been there before with grandparents as we lost three to cancer, but the credit really goes out to our mother, Anna.
“There easily could’ve been times when we crumbled but we’ve drawn strength from her and it’s brought us a lot closer as a family.”
On Sunday the boys, whose hometown is Colchester, will run their first marathon in lime green T-shirts given to them by Mark Elling, events manager at the Trussell Trust.
Training has been difficult for both Alex and Matt, who studies in Brighton, to fit around university lectures, but they are all ready for the challenge.
Alex added: “The time isn’t important, we just want to cross the line together as a family.”
To support the Smith brothers, visit justgiving.com/Alexander-Smith12.
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