A letter from Sue McDonald & Macmillan Cancer Support’s North West team.

Thank you. Two words which don’t seem enough.

365 marathons. 365 Days. Over £1.3m raised. Galvanising an entire community, and an unprecedented level of awareness raised for Macmillan Cancer Support and Hospice at Home – West Cumbria.

After reading Jon Colman’s piece in the News and Star – we wanted to respond on behalf of the North West team at Macmillan Cancer Support.

We have all followed Gary McKee’s marathon journey in 2022 and this feels like the longest new year hangover ever. How do we start our day, not being able to tune into his daily blog posts, watch the ‘lives’ on Facebook or see him on our screens? It became a part of our daily routine over a cuppa.  

Putting Gary’s achievement into some form of context. Raising over £1 million is phenomenal. But to do this in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis and on the back of a pandemic felt almost impossible. Gary first shared his plans way with us in 2021.

Running almost 10,000 miles in year, raising a million pounds – we always knew Gary liked a challenge, but this was a whole new level! When you sit down and talk to Gary, he has a way of making you realise that the only thing stopping you is…you.  

These are difficult times for all, but for people affected by cancer – we hear of people making hard choices – food or heating. Costs are high and Macmillan’s investment in financial support continues to grow, an extra £5m was invested in 2022 to support people.

Gary raised an unbelievable amount for charity, but often he would talk about how a Macmillan financial grant “could buy a food blender for someone with throat cancer” – telling people of the financial support that was out there, at a time when they may have felt in a dark place.

Through all Gary’s interviews, stories, lives, posts – Gary was a spokesperson to tell people that help, in all forms, is out there. That is priceless.

Thank you, Gary. You and the amazing Team 365 did it! In putting your trainers away (for now at least!) picture those people you’ve helped to go outside and enjoy that rain.