The team are raising money for Momentum after Sonia and her family started receiving support from the charity when her son Jack, 3, was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder called Angelman Syndrome. Sonia had noticed Jack hadn’t been reaching a number of developmental milestones including rolling or sitting up, and he received his diagnosis at 15 months old. Angelman Syndrome causes developmental and neurological disabilities including problems with speech, movement and regular seizures.

Sonia and her teammates Kieran, Alan, Siobhan, Andrew, Tony and Ed, are reaching the final stages of an intense 12-week training plan which has seen them cover hundreds of miles to date. 

Taking place on Sunday 2 April, the London Landmarks Half Marathon will see 16,000 runners covering the 13.1-mile course which sets off at Pall Mall and finishes outside Downing Street. The route takes participants past some of the Capital’s most iconic landmarks including Big Ben, St. Paul’s Cathedral, The Shard and The Tower of London. 

Fifteen people are part of the Momentum London Landmarks Half Marathon team and together they have a combined fundraising target of £5,250 which will support our work.

Receiving Jack’s diagnosis was undoubtedly the hardest day of our lives. The Doctors informed us that we would never hear Jack’s voice, he’d never walk, and would need round-the-clock care. Our hospital put us in touch with Momentum and one of their Family Support Workers has been by our side ever since. When we got Jack’s diagnosis we didn’t know how to tell our daughter Olivia, who was five years old at the time. Momentum organised some Play Therapy sessions for Olivia with a brilliant lady called Donna who completely changed our way of thinking.  With Donna’s support, we found the strength to tell Olivia about Jack, which was a huge weight off our shoulders. To this day, Olivia still talks about Donna, she left a positive mark in a very difficult time. We want to raise as much money as possible so Momentum can continue to be there for people like us.

Before I took on this challenge I couldn’t run a mile, now I am regularly running 15km. It is really beautiful where I live – there is a lot of countryside so that has been ideal for training. I travel a lot with my job and I’ve recently been running on the other side of the world in Australia, as well as in Peru and parts of Europe. Training for the challenge has not only improved my fitness levels, it has been great for my mental health too.”

Bianca Effemey, Founder and CEO of Momentum Children’s Charity said: “Sending a huge amount of luck to Sonia and her team, and all our other London Landmarks Half Marathon runners. They have trained hard for three months, showing a real sense of commitment – especially on those cold, dark winter nights.  Now it is time for the final push and for everyone to get behind our runners by sponsoring them. Every penny raised will allow us to continue being there for local families of seriously ill children so they don’t have to cope alone.”

Help Sonia and her team reach their fundraising target here

Sonia on BBC Radio Surrey (1 Apr 2023)