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"Great fun and filled with positivity!"

To raise money for Beat, Jade organised a Dog Jog, a relaxed run for people of all abilities and their canine friends! Read about her experience of fundraising below!

Why did you want to fundraise for Beat?

I wanted to fundraise for Beat to raise vital funds so that the charity could continue to support those suffering with eating disorders. Having been through an eating disorder myself six year ago now and then having to watch my now fifteen-year-old sister Amba also fall victim to an eating disorder, I know only too well how destroying they can be and how heartbreaking it is to not only go through one yourself, but to also watch your loved ones suffer. Beat do some wonderful work and the resources available can be very helpful to not just sufferers, but the family and friends of those suffering. Our funds were just a small contribution to some of the great work Beat does, but knowing it can help in some way, whether that’s just one person or a group of people, is extremely satisfying as I know just how liberating it feels to recover from an eating disorder. 

How was your fundraising and event positive for you and what did you enjoy most about it?

Choosing to do a Dog Jog to support Beat was great fun and filled with positivity having a focus point of dogs! The best thing about it was having our amazing dog Gizmo involved who has been a blessing to our family through some tough times. Gizmo came into our lives just before my sister Amba fell into her eating disorder, so was our rock helping us help her in her recovery. I knew only too well, one day he would without doubt be involved in our fundraising. The Dog Jog was such a unique event and Gizmo even had his own personalised running vest made, to show everyone he was supporting Beat. To make it even better we were selected as ambassadors for the event so had to vlog all of our training sessions in the lead up to the big day. This was really enjoyable and being able to cross the finish line with not only my dog, but my best friend next to me was a moment I’ll cherish forever.

How did having a challenge or event to aim for help?

Having the Dog Jog to work towards really helped our fundraising as it made us push ourselves and promote our event and fundraising weekly to ensure our target was met. Creating our vlogs also helped showcase to others what we were doing and why and gave us that motivation to keep going. We were lucky to have some very generous donations from family and friends that we are forever grateful for and know Beat are too. Working so hard in the lead up to our event made us really give it our all on the day and knowing the reason we were ultimately doing this gave us even more drive. I was so proud of Gizmo at just two years old running his little legs off. I think he’s really clever too and I believe even he knows he’s doing something so positive to help others.

What would you say to anyone thinking of supporting Beat?

To anyone else thinking of supporting Beat, I’d say don’t even think about it – just do it! It’s such a self-rewarding moment when the day of your event arrives, and you successfully finish it. No matter how big or how small you think that event might be, it all means something and they’re all as positive as each other and they all go towards helping Beat. My family and I have been fundraising for the last six years for Beat now enjoyed every moment. From fun runs, sponsored silences and dog jogs – they’ve all helped someone out there in one way or another. Having lived experiences of eating disorders where Beat has had to come into our lives, I can confidently say they will always be a charity that I will always have a special connection to.