Natasha's London Marathon for charity
A WELSH Ambulance Service worker is running the London Marathon for charity.
Investigations Supervisor Officer Natasha Preston is running the 26.2 miles to raise money for the Wales Air Ambulance.
The 34-year-old, who first joined the Trust as a 999 call handler five years ago, is taking on the challenge to support the charity which helped her father after a cycling accident.
Natasha said: “A couple of years ago, my dad was knocked off his bike.
“He went over the windscreen and his bike was completely written off.
“The Wales Air Ambulance rushed to his attendance, and he was flown to Ysbyty Gwynedd.
“He was bruised all over, but if it wasn’t for helmet, it could have been much worse.
“You never think it’s going to happen to your family, or that you're ever going to need to use the service, especially when you work within the NHS.
“But obviously that's not true, and I’m just really grateful for the Wales Air Ambulance that they were able to help.
“Running a marathon, it's something I wanted to do anyway, but I thought it would be nice to give something back to repay them for their service.”
The TCS London Marathon will take place on Sunday 23 April with a route that takes in some of the most famous landmarks in the city including Buckingham Palace, The Cutty Sark, Tower Bridge and Canary Wharf.
Natasha said: “I’ve always been a runner, although I never thought I'd be able to do a marathon and I only applied via a ballot place, so I was really lucky.
“I’m scared but also really excited, especially as it will be a new running area for me, with some brilliant landmarks and atmosphere.
“I’ve been training for a while, so I'm hoping the harder I train, the more comfortable I will be on the day.
“I feel like I'm getting stronger physically and mentally.
“I have a brilliant support system.
“The work team are really supportive, I have friends that I run with, and my mum, dad boyfriend, sister and her partner will be supporting me on the day.
“As soon as I finish, I'll probably hang up my running shoes… for at least a few weeks.”
Caitlin Kilby-Williams, Concerns Quality Assurance Manager, said: “Ever since I’ve known Natasha, she has been dedicated to her running, fitting in hours of training every week.
“It is an incredible achievement to be running the London Marathon and raising money for such a vital service.
“The whole team is incredibly proud of her commitment, and we are all wishing her the best of luck.”
You can sponsor Natasha by clicking here.
Editor’s Notes
The Wales Air Ambulance covers the whole of Wales every single day. Each year, they attend over 3,500 missions by air and by road. For more information: https://www.walesairambulance.com
For more information, email Communications Officer Beth.Eales@wales.nhs.uk or call Beth on 07870 383209.