Phil's Memory Marathon

TCS London Marathon 2024

Why the Stroke Association?

In 2019, my husband Phil suffered a catastrophic stroke following heart surgery. This devastated his life and that of those who loved him, leaving him unable to speak and partially paralysed. He spent 5 months in hospital and in time and with a lot of hard work, he learned to walk again and managed to regain some of his speech. Phil was unable to work or drive although he was desperate to do both, and this motivated him to work hard at his recovery. We knew he would never be back to where he was before the stroke but for over 3 years he pushed himself to keep getting better. It was a challenging time for us all but we were all incredibly proud of Phil and the support of those around him helped to push him further, and he made a much better recovery than anyone had predicted given the amount of damage caused to his brain.

Then in January 2023 he became ill. It transpired he had suffered another stroke - a spontaneous bleed this time damaging much of the healthy brain tissue he had left. And this time there was no chance of recovery and Phil died just 3 weeks after his 51st birthday.

His death was a tragedy. He leaves behind 3 children, a grandson, parents, sisters, in laws, nephews, nieces, cousins, aunties and uncles and countless friends who have all been devastated by his passing. And I have lost my husband, becoming widowed at just 37 years old. 

I am honoured to be running the marathon in Phil's name. I am not a runner, and neither is Cat! But we're going to give it a good go! We massively appreciate the support shown by everyone we have told so far and hope to raise lots of money for a cause so close to my heart.

Thank you.

Polly 

We are taking part in the TCS London Marathon as part of #TeamStroke

We joined #TeamStroke for the TCS London Marathon 2024.

There are over 1.3 million stroke survivors in the UK, with 100,000 strokes happening in the UK each year. That's one stroke every five minutes.

We're here to support people to rebuild their lives after stroke. We believe everyone deserves to live the best life they can after stroke, so we work with the stroke community to make sure people affected by stroke get the very best care and support. We rely on your support to provide vital services, campaign for better stroke care and fund research into preventative and rehabilitative treatments.

Thank you to our Sponsors

£1,000

Di Kelly

I’m so very proud of you. 💕

£448

Glenfall Primary School

Donations collected from the retiring collections from the Christmas Performances at Glenfall Primary School in memory of Phil. Many thanks to all of the parents and carers for their generosity and kindness.

£200

Gillian Clements

F*****g t**t the f**k out of that b*****d run mate!

£186

Jase

You’re going to smash it Polly and Cat. Phil would be so very proud of u xx

£164

Anonymous

£106

John And Jill

£106

The Rutts

Go girls!! You’re AMAZING!!

£106

James Harris & Hannah B

Good lucky Polly (& Cat)! You are doing such an amazing thing xxx

£101

Viv & Bob Hargreaves

Go for it Polly! Good luck from Viv & Bob xxx

£100

Hilary & Bob

£100

Sophie Kelly

I'm in admiration of you both! I certainly couldn't imagine doing anything like this. You are amazing!! Looking forward to supporting you from the sidelines and hoping your blisters soften!

£100

Dominic Casey

£100

Carly Swales

We are extremely proud of you both! Good luck! Lots of love year 2 xxx

£100

Emily Kelly

I'm so so proud of you and can't wait to be there supporting you on the big day! You're an inspiration and I know you'll both smash it 🙌 love you lots xxx

£100

Dympna Molloy

£80

Jody Hung

Brilliant! Well done!

£74

Dc Educate

Over the line!

£71

Jamie Anderson

£53

Jim And Ulli Drewett

Good luck to you both tomorrow!!! A fantastic effort for a great cause. Inspirational! Big love from Jim, Ulli, Matilda, Ebba and Lotta xxxx

£53

Carolyn Pawson

£53

Pilvi

Go on Mrs Whyte!! Love Pilvi x

£53

Pete Davis

Good luck Polly you can do it

£53

Miranda Carminger

Well Done!!! Super impressive.

£53

Janette Chalkley

£53

Jo Allen

Polly and Cat what an amazing challenge to take on. I have no doubt you’ll smash it!! Good luck with the training. You can do it!!! Xx

£53

Helen Tibbetts

Wishing both Polly and Cat all the luck in the world 🥰 I will support you both in whatever way I can ❤️ You can both do this!!!! Lots of love Helen xxxx

£53

Ann Cunningham

The very best of luck with your run. You have been so strong, keep it up! Aunty Margaret’s friend, Ann

£53

James & Anisha

£53

Alex

Best of luck to you. Xxx

£53

Ollie & Alex Lambert

Well done, this is an immense effort for a great cause. All the Lamberts will be cheering you on!

£53

Lucy Brooks

Go ladies! Good luck. Lots of love, Lucy (Tabitha's mum) xxx

£53

Harriet Jackson

Wow! We’re very impressed, good luck to you both, the whole of Glenfall will be cheering you on!

£53

Gill Woodman

£53

Mitch

#YesUCan run the London Marathon. The Mitchells will be there to cheer you on!

£53

The Wheelers

Bravo-go-go!

£53

The Hardcastle Family

Amazing challenge and amazing cause - very best of luck and we hope you enjoy as much of the marathon as is possible!

£53

Helen & Simon Warren

Wishing you both masses of good luck ❤️ you are both completely amazing and you are doing brilliantly . Loads of love xxxx❤️

£53

Jennifer Legg

What an incredible challenge, and for such an important cause - we know you’re going to smash it! Lots of love from everyone in Reception Class xxx

£53

Alison Edginton

Well done, Polly!

£53

Otto & Lenny Randle

Go Mrs Woodman & Mrs Whyte!! Xx

£53

Jane Scarlett

Good luck with the marathon Poppy - will be cheering for you from the sidelines/sofa

£53

Jill Drewett

Good luck to you both! Lots of love xxx

£53

Felicity & James

Best of luck, we will be there!

£53

Steve & Aimee Grindle

Well done Polly! Phil would be so proud of you 👏🏻 keep going xxx

£52

Bob And Jo Batt

Good luck Polly ❤️ you will be fab and we will be thinking of you every step of the way. So proud of you xx

£52

Louise Allen

Amazing cause! Well done to you both! XX

£52

Sue Pincombe

£51

Claire & Family

Good luck Polly & Cat, go well x

£50

Maddie Belcher Y1

Good Luck Mrs Whyte and Mrs Woodman! Inspirational both inside and outside the classroom Love from Maddie Belcher and family xx

£50

James

Good luck Cat and Polly! James and Ellie x

£50

Max And Jess Mcpherson

Whow what a challenge! You are both amazing and this will be a beautiful tribute. Very well done

£50

Wendy Richards

£43

Luke & Natalie Pegler

Such an inspiration! Wishing you both the very best of luck xx

£42

Catherine Atkinson

Good luck, x

£42

Tom Radley

Training Done! Only 42.2k until it’s all done! Countless candles, floods, pigeons, cider vinegar, snow and selfies later you’re both so ready to smash it!

£41

The Waugh Family

You did it!!! Amazing effort, huge congratulations to you both.

£35

Year 1

A top up from the year 1 children

£32

Allison Aitken

£32

The Swales Grandparents

An amazing challenge you are undertaking for an excellent cause.

£32

Emily, John And Hope Xxxxx

An incredible act of courage and strength in honour of an incredible man - YOU GO GIRLS!!

£32

Sue Jones

What a fantastic thing you are doing Polly! Go smash it! xx

£32

Louise Sandy

You are both absolutely amazing and Phil would be so proud! Well done ladies and best of luck with the training and the run. X

£31

The Children Of Year 1

Good luck Mrs Whyte & Mrs Woodman you can do it!

£31

Jasmine Cheal

Best of luck to you both! X

£31

Julie And Pete

Good luck. Take my hat off to you and wish you best of luck on the day xx

£27

Naomi Grabham

Good luck!!

£27

Jayne Hatton

I lost my Nan to a stroke this Christmas and wanted to donate to someone running in her honour. Your story is inspirational and I wish you lots of luck for the day - Phil will be with you every step of the way xx I found your page with the help of Siobhan 😍

£27

Carol Hunt

You are an inspiration and I wish you all the best in your truly amazing venture xxx

£27

Sarah Smith

So proud of you Cat x x x x

£27

Seja Smyth

Loads of luck and love xxx

£27

Maxine Perryman

A fantastic achievement - well done to both of you.

£27

Pauline Hayward

Good Luck!

£27

Susan Palt

£27

Anna Mai Armstrong

Good luck today Polly x

£27

Dom

Advent collection for Stroke Association. Just keep running both of you x

£27

Margaret

Amazing- well done!

£27

Mark Williiamson

Very best of luck

£27

Emma, Pete And Oli

You are both amazing!

£27

Louis Hayne

£27

Mrs R-b

Go Polly!!!

£27

Simon And Karen

Good luck from the Worcester Whyte's.

£27

Gill Wyatt

£27

Claire Pegler

What a challenge for an amazing cause ! Well done Polly and Good luck ! xx

£27

Ed Neale

What a fantastic journey to get the start line, you have got this, you will smash it. Two things - YesUcan and smile if you want to go faster.

£27

David, Susan, Harrison And Austin

Wishing you all the best when the big day comes! An amazing cause and truly inspiring what you’re doing 😊

£27

Pen And Susie Taylor

Good luck 😊 love Pen and Susie Taylor

£27

Jane Robinson

Good luck with the training and Gethin’s looking forward to spotting you on the tv coverage!

£27

Ant And Phil

£27

The Piper Browns

Good Luck Cat! From Andy, Georgia & Lucas

£27

The Nye Family

This is amazing, Polly and Cat! A cause very close to our hearts too so we are happy to help in this small way. Good Luck - hoping to be there to cheer you both on! Lots of love and luck, Helen, Mark, Charlie and Bethany

£27

Ann Whyte

£27

The Stubbingses

Orson says "GOOD JOB!!" Best of luck, you got this 👍

£27

Brian And Sue Cripps

Go for it, Polly and Cat. What a wonderful challenge for you both. You can do it. We'll be thinking of you. All the very best.

£27

Jen Thomas

Best of luck to both of you! An inspiration to many - I'm sure you'll do brilliantly

£26

Pen & Susie

YOU BOSSED IT! And what an incredible amount to raise. You must be so, so proud. We have loved tracking you today 💎💎

£26

Helen Bowen

Good luck - a marathon is an awesome achievement and for a brilliant cause. Much love xx

£26

Lynne Baker

Good Luck Polly, you can do it! Xx

£26

Steve Lomax

#YesUCan Polly and Cat. You’ve got this 💪💪 Enjoy the experience !!

£26

Alison Hutson

Amazing! Good luck with the training both of you. 👍❤️

£26

Lisa Fostier

Good luck to all Hats off to you Polly hopefully see you there xx

£26

Mary Oram

Good luck x

£26

Freddie Spalding

Go Cat Go!! Enjoy your day and Good Luck to you both Freddie x

£26

Liam Pickford

Lx

£26

Denis Brumwell

Good luck and hope all goes well. Love Denis x

£26

Julie

£26

Debbie Gaynor

£1 per mile!

£25

Sue And Phil

Good luck Cat, a great charity - go for it !, love Sue and Phil xx

£25

Ian & Anne Chandler

Hope you enjoy the experience, as well as raising loads of money for a great cause. We’ll be looking out for you in the Telly!

£25

Cat Partridge

Sending lots of love today, good luck both of you! Lots of love Brooke and Lilly x

£25

Orla And Hugo Briggs

What an amazing thing to do! We will be cheering you both on xx

£25

Heather Hawkes

Good luck, you can do it! From Thea & Orla

£25

Jen-jen

Absolutely brilliant so far - only a few miles to add on and you’re done 🤪 - wishing you both all the best and lots of luck.

£25

Judith Clements

Good luck Polly. I greatly admire what you are doing.

£25

Busbys

£25

Nicola And Justin

Good luck with the training. Xx

£25

Emily Lim

Loving hearing all your training stories! With you all the way ❤️

£25

Sue & Roly Kelly

Sending good thoughts and love x

£25

Sam, Dean, H, Zach & Rory

You have my upmost admiration Polly. No words. Phil would be so proud of you. You’ll smash this, because as you’ve done - you keep going! All our love and support xxx

£22

Swain Family

Good luck to you both! We are sure you will smash it! Love the Swain family!

£21

Graham Warner

£21

Isabel Male

You are amazing, go smash it Polly ✨

£21

Pete And Chris

Good luck. You will smash it.

£21

Kim

Go on girls…you’ve got this 💪🏼😊💕

£21

Henry Bentall

£21

Kerry Pasquet

£21

Ralph Shatford

Good luck from Ralph Shatford and family Xxxx

£21

Christine O'neill

Congratulations Polly and Cat! xx

£21

Jo Barry

Good luck Polly and Cat. You'll smash it. xx

£21

Jess & Matt

Good luck Polly, we are so proud of you! Love Jess, Matt, Barney & Olive xx

£21

Lisa Downward

We will be thinking of you both every step of the way..We think you are Amazing🌟🌟Congratulations & Well Done🎉🙌🫶🙌🫶💖XXXX

£21

Karina Penny

£21

Florrie

Good luck Mrs Whyte and Mrs Woodman. You can do it! 🏃‍♀️💥

£21

Christine O'neill

I'll be cheering you both on! xx

£21

Julia Caskey

An amazing challenge for an amazing person and teacher. Wishing you all the best for the marathon and this amazing cause x

£21

Cullen Whyte

Good luck Cat and well done x

£21

Amber And Lucas Howes

Amazing that you are doing this and being so strong, good luck to you both, love Lucas and Amber Howes

£21

Alfie And The Lea Family

Best of luck, Mrs Woodman and Mrs Whyte! What an amazing and inspiring thing to do.

£21

Alison

Good luck, wishing you all the best. Keep going, you'll do it.

£21

G&b

Go Cat! You're a superstar!

£21

The Carroll Family

Good luck!

£21

Kate, Anna And Jude Wood

£21

Stacy Hyett

You are going to smash it

£21

Mike

£21

Ana Billingham

We are so sorry for your loss, we will be cheering you on on Sunday. Lots of love Betty & Vi

£21

Helen Green

£21

Ollie Newton

I'm really proud of you for raising money for an amazing cause. They have really helped my daddy when he had his 2 strokes. I look forward to trying to spot you on the tv!

£21

Rick & Marie Millican

Good luck both! X

£21

Cat Whyte

Money found on a training run!! But I want to say you are both totally amazing!!

£21

Judith Weeks

So proud of you both.

£21

The Robinson Family

What an amazing challenge Polly and Cat! You’ll be brilliant, best of luck. The Robinson Family 😊 xxx

£20

Kelly Ensor

This is just amazing! Best of luck Polly xxx

£20

Ann-marie Duberley

£20

Luke Sterry

£20

Lucy Pollock

Good luck Mrs Woodman and Mrs White! From Harvey and Lucy ❤️🤩

£20

Maria Smith

£20

Najma Chesshire

£20

Amy Lewis

Great job ladies! Enjoy! Lots of love from Amy, Brian & the boys xxx

£20

Hannah Hart

£20

Emily Clark

Massive good luck to you both - amazing and inspirational thing to be doing. Lots of love Emily and Izzy xx

£20

Mark, Lou + Callie

Hope trainings gone well Polly, best of luck for the race day, sure you’ll smash it! Sending hugs + best wishes Mark, Lou + Callie xxx

£20

Becky O'connor

Good luck Polly and Cat, you've done brilliantly with all of your training and will smash it on the day. What an amazing amount of money you have raised for this cause.

£20

Sarah & Paul

You're both amazing. Good luck, looking forward to hearing all about it xx

£20

Ed & Steph

£16

Julie Chivers

Well done Polly, you are amazing xx

£16

Donna &glenn

Well done Donna&Glenn

£16

Albert Mudge

Good luck 🤞 Love Albert, Rob and Jen

£16

Ollie Lambert Y4 Xmas

£16

Sara Blair

Congratulations to you both. A mighty challenge for a wonderful cause! Xx

£16

Roger Hayne

You got this!!!

£16

Rosie And Jake

£15

Taylor Bourne

Best of luck!

£15

Jane Brettingham

Good luck Polly.I wish you all the best.

£15

Mary And Julian.

What an amazing thing to do. He would be very proud. Good luck from us all. Xx

£13

Helen Tibbetts

My winnings from the Glenfall Gold Cup draw, not a lot but a little extra. Wishing you both so much luck and love ❤️

£11

Sian Davies

Good luck and lots of love to you and the family xxx

£11

Gill Dorman

Good luck to you both

£11

Sarah Grosvenor

Well done

£11

Lise Elliott

Good luck Polly and Cat such a good cause in Phil’s memory. Love Lisa, Dave, Amie and Lola

£11

Becky Holland

Congratulations on your achievement Becky, Jer & Ronnie Holland

£11

Matt Bailey

Amazing efforts xxx

£11

Lisa Morter

£11

Anonymous

Go Mrs W x2

£11

Jenny Norman

So proud of you polly! I hope after the marathon you still continue to run to the salon to see me:) Lots of love Jenny Jimmy & daisy!

£11

Samantha Cross

Wishing you all the best both of you. Love Samantha, Gabriella and Polly Cross

£11

Frankie Batt

Go Polly, you can do this. 🥰 xx

£11

Michelle Watts

Congratulations, fantastic achievement!

£11

Sue Williams

I was so proud to see you both run past mile 13. What a great achievement for a very worthy cause. From Sue (and Lucas Hemmings)

£11

Rich Edginton

Well done Polly great effort

£11

Anna Knight

You can do this Polly, looking forward to giving you a well done hug at the next GLOW event, Anna

£11

Claire Hannis

What an amazing thing you’re both doing and well done with your training so far. Good luck with it, you should both be very proud of yourselves. Lots of love and best wishes!

£11

Alex Brown

Good luck!

£11

Helena Palmer

Go Polly! I’m sure you’ll be amazing. Enjoy every minute. Don’t forget the jelly babies!

£11

Anonymous

£11

Tilly And Billy Swales

We’re excited to track you today! Keep going and good luck! X

£11

Katherine Wills

Well done Polly and Cat.

£11

Vanessa Meek

Absolutely fantastic! All the very best with the training 🥰

£11

Alice Lloyd

Good luck! I'm sure you'll smash it.

£11

Tabitha Brooks

You two are amazing! Lots of love Tabitha xxx

£11

Julia Potter

£11

Laura & Will Boulton

Go on Polly!!!! You can do it. ❤️ xx

£11

Amanda Newdeck

£11

Anonymous

£11

Tim Blakey

Good luck Polly, you've got this! I hope you manage to enjoy it - I will look out for you on TV.

£11

Elese Seabeck-brookes

Go Polly and Cat! Good luck to you both - you will be amazing! X

£11

Nicola Mooney

Best of luck with the run. A huge amount of admiration for you for this, and your strength as a person since the time Phil initially became ill. I have no doubt he’s incredibly proud of you xx

£11

Leah Armstrong

Well done, what an achievement and such an amazing cause. Xxx

£11

Anonymous

£11

Judith Overy

Well done Polly and Cat from Sarah’s (Mitchell) mum.

£11

Abi

I only met Phil a couple of times but went to school and prom with his son Tom. You're so incredible for doing this! Good luck x

£11

Sue Johnson

Good luck!!

£10

Charlotte Budenis

Good luck both of you! Go and smash it 💪🏻🤍

£10

Hannah

£10

Sara Beasley

Well done guys! A wonderful charity close to my heart. Xxxx

£10

Kathryn

You can do this! Isabelle and Coco will also be cheering you on. Good luck

£10

Emily Woodman

£10

Rachel Rabjohns

£10

Serena Nuhu

Best of luck xx

£10

Jo Lane

Wishing you all the best.

£10

Elizabeth Hines

£10

Anonymous

Good luck with the marathon!

£10

Deb F From Gwyn James

£10

The Welch Family

£10

Sarah Wennell

Good luck with your running and fundraising, I’m sure you will smash it! xx

£10

Zoe Cardelli

Such an incredible challenge to take on ladies! Wishing you the best of luck - I have no doubt you’ll smash it! Xx

£10

Seema Patel

£10

Sophie Johnson-pyatt

Sending love & good luck 💚

£5

Gavin Pugh

£5

Ej

Wishing you lots of luck!

£5

Eliza Casey

£5

Joannn Baker