A dentist is hoping to extract money from sponsors this weekend in a run to help patients in Gaza.
Hannah Hutchison will be taking part in the Cardiff Half Marathon on Sunday to raise money for a mobile dental clinic in Gaza.
The Gaza clinic has been funded solely by the Church in Wales for the past decade to provide vital medical care to 70,000 people in remote and deprived areas. This year it needs £26,000 to keep it on the road.
As a busy dentist in Abergavenny, Hannah thought it was the ideal cause to support as she set herself a tough physical challenge.
She said, “I first heard about the Gaza dental clinic during Christmas 2010, at a service at St Mary’s Priory in Abergavenny. My interest was roused by my profession, and the feeling that however stressful my days can be, working in such a situation as Gaza is infinitely more difficult. It was an obvious choice to raise money for as I began to prepare to enter the Cardiff Half Marathon.
“I have already had much support from patients, friends and family, but hope to raise much more for such a good cause.”
Filling her time with training has proved a tough drill, though, said Hannah, who already leads a hectic life. She works three days a week at the Gateway Dental Practice, looks after her children, runs a Brownie group and is preparing to take her Grade 7 piano exam. So she’s no stranger to challenges.
“This will be the first (and last!) time I run this distance – the challenge was to do one before my 40th birthday! The training has been hard – both physically and mentally. I hope that I will be able to maintain my improved level of fitness, though, so I will continue to run about five miles three times a week or so.”
The Archdeacon of Margam, Philip Morris, who coordinates the fund for the mobile dental clinic, said, “We are delighted that Hannah is running to help patients in Gaza and we’ll be egging her on all the way.
“The mobile dental clinic, with the Welsh dragon clearly displayed on its doors, travels around the streets of Gaza city and makes a real difference to thousands of people who otherwise would have no access to dental care. It is a unique Welsh charity as it depends totally on the continued support of the Church in Wales.”
Anyone who wants to sponsor Hannah, should send a cheque payable to the Church in Wales Jubilee Fund and send it to the Hannah Hutchison Run, Treasurer, Church in Wales, 39 Cathedral Rd, Cardiff, CF11 9XF, tel 02920 348228
