Meet Taylor Fletcher, one of our lovely fundraisers taking part in the 2023 London Marathon!

A few years ago, Taylor worked in Lapland as the ‘Snow Queen’ where she had fun with all the families that came to visit Father Christmas. One year, we took some families on a special trip here and this is where Taylor first encountered Starlight.

‘We had a Starlight Ball one evening and the kids just loved it, some of them even had teddys that looked like my character,’ Taylor explains. ‘I got to speak with some of the parents and I got quite chocked up. One comment that stuck with me in particular was from a parent who said, “you’ve made my child’s Christmas, it’s been so magical.”‘That’s why I wanted to get in touch with Starlight and make sure I could raise money for them. It’s just such a worthwhile cause, and I’ve seen first hand the impact it has on the children Starlight support.’Taylor owns her own entertainment company, which means she’s spent a lot of time with children and sees ‘how happy they are when they’re playing and being entertained. It’s so important that children have that, especially when they have a serious illness because it allows them moments of feeling carefree.’‘I suffered a lot with my mental health growing up and I wonder if I had more opportunities to play and be carefree then it might have been easier.’Training for the London Marathon hasn’t been an easy feat, but with the help of her partner and her dad, Taylor has been keeping up with the challenge.

‘I’ve been training with my partner, as she’s running the London marathon too but one point she got injured so it then became really hard to motivate and drag myself out alone. It’s really challenging in the winter when it’s so cold and dark too. Luckily, she’s much better now so we are back to training together.‘My birthday recently was a real boost too, all my presents were running related so I’ve now got all the gear and most importantly it keeps me warm. My dad is being so supportive too, he’s always wanted to run a marathon but now he’s 56 he thinks he would struggle, so he’s living his marathon dream through me!’

We wish Taylor the best of luck ahead of the marathon!

Help Taylor reach her fundraising goal by donating here.