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Coast-to-coast run to honour suicide brother
RUNNING MEN: Mark Ashworth, Shane Horkan and Carl Appleyard who are to run 140 miles in memory of Shanes brother Chris.
The brother of a man who took his own life without warning will run the breadth of the country in his memory.
Shane Horkan will be joined by friends Mark Ashworth, 47, and Carl Appleyard, 36, in running 140 miles in six days from Bridlington on the east coast to Blackpool on the west.
The trio are fundraising in memory of Chris Horkan, who took his life in September 2008 at the age of 24.
IT engineer Shane, 35, of Parnaby Avenue, Hunslet, said: “I think it will be great, but emotional. I know that when it gets hard I’ll just have to think about why we’re doing it and that will spur us on.
“There’s no way we won’t finish it.”
Chris, who lived at Westbury Place in Hunslet, was found by a friend at home following his death on September 24, 2008.
Shane said: “There was no sign of it, no-one had any idea he was depressed. He was such a happy-go-lucky kind of person. Even now we don’t know why he did it.
“I haven’t been able to talk about it, I’ve been very closed off and there are certain words I haven’t been able to say. This is kind of helping me to talk about suicide – it’s a little bit of therapy, helping me to come to terms with it and do something positive.”
The trio have already raised more than £1,000 in sponsorship. They set off on July 30.
Several other people have promised to join them on the last leg, from Preston to Blackpool.
The money will go to the Papyrus charity, which aims to prevent suicide among young people.
Charity chief executive Ged Flynn said: “We shall be thinking of them throughout their amazing 140-mile challenge. Their support is helping us to raise awareness and reduce the stigma of suicide by extending our messages to young people, encouraging them to talk and above all to seek help.”
For more information about the run, and to donate, visit: www.140milesforchris.co.uk
Leeds fighter Scott Aitken will give the proceeds from his match at Oceana nightclub in Leeds on Sunday (February 5) to the fundraising bid.
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