A DUMFRIES teacher completed a year-long 1000km fundraising run last week to raise money for her students with disabilities.
Sarah Armstrong teaches children in the Rainbow Room Learning Centre at Calside Primary School.
They have additional support needs, including autism, ADHD, sensory, visual and mobility needs, communication needs and developmental delays.
As the school’s outdoor area is not resourced ideally to meet the needs of these children, Sarah decided to raise the money herself through the charity run.
She said: “I looked for an activity that would challenge me both physically and emotionally, because the children in the Rainbow Room face physical and mental challenges every day in the school environment and this is what we are trying to improve for them.
“I decided to run 1000km over the school year. There are 190 days in the school year, so 5km every school day works out at 950km, leaving 50km to do on top of that.”
“To be clear, I am not a runner. By my own admission, I’m a middle-aged, overweight arthritic person who would rather be in the garden reading a good book or watching a movie with my family, rather than rushing around and wearing unflattering lycra.
“This challenge meant that I would be out in all weathers; dark, cold and rainy in winter months and hot and sticky in the summer. “But if you think about it, that’s what we ask our autistic children to do at school every day; something that may be out of their comfort zone and in an environment that isn’t entirely comfortable for them.”
Sarah trained all last summer holidays, from being a non-runner to being able to run 5km a day.
And now, after a year of running and training, she has reached 1000km and completed the challenge, finishing with one final 5km run with students that took place on Tuesday afternoon.
Sarah added: “I still do not enjoy running, but it has been a challenge with many positives, such as finding new places in the local area on my running routes.
“The main positive will be the resources we can buy for the children in the Rainbow Room. The children will be very grateful!”
To donate, please visit Sarah’s JustGiving page.
