Brace yourself for Muppet mayhem this Sunday (1 May) as 70 Cookie Monsters take to the streets of Reading to raise money for Diabetes UK.
The 10k fun run is the brainchild of SEPD’s Charlie Edwards from Caversham whose friend Raj Patel suffered from Type 1 Diabetes and tragically passed away last year, aged 24. Raj’s love of running and his Cookie Monster onesie was the inspiration for the zany event.
Speaking ahead of the big day, Charlie said: “Raj was a great friend to a lot of people, and I was keen to hold an event where we could all not only get together in his memory, but also to raise money for a charity which meant a lot to him. In the last few years of his life Raj got more and more passionate about his running, and when he wasn’t in his trainers, shorts and vest, he loved to relax in his Cookie Monster onesie.”
Charlie, a project manager in our Reading base, has enlisted the help of his SEPD colleagues, some of whom who will be dressing up and running the 10k, with others organising water pit stops and acting as marshals for the event.
“We’ve got 70 people all raring to go for Sunday, and as well as Raj’s friends, we have members of his family coming along to take part. The age range on the day is quite wide so for those not able to take part in the 10k run we’re also hosting a 5k walk. Working in such a large office I’ve managed to get some of my colleagues to take part in the run, with others lending a hand with the marshalling and support activities.”
The route for the day takes in parts of Reading that were particular favourites of Raj and his friends. It will go past Reading University, where Charlie and Raj were students, along the River Thames before ending up at The Island Bar at Caversham Bridge where well deserved food, drinks and cookies will be scoffed by the ‘monsters’.
Although entries for the event are now closed, Charlie is keen to raise as much money as possible for Diabetes UK and is asking anyone who wants to help to go to www.justgiving.com/teams/cookiemonster.