uMhlanga resident completes fundraising run for SPCA

THE spirit of the Comrades Marathon and community was alive and well recently as uMhlanga resident James McCallum completed his 90 kilometre virtual Comrades Marathon run for charity.

Inspired by Humphrey the dog’s incredible fundraising journey the 40-year-old ran nine loops (each loop measures 10 kilometres) in and around the area raising funds for the Durban & Coast SPCA and St Michael’s Anglican Church in uMhlanga.

Incredibly, through his efforts which saw him start and end at Daily Dose on Durban View Road, McCallum raised more than R3 000 for the SPCA and more than R1 500 was raised for St Michael’s on the day.

Related story: SPCA toast to Humphrey’s ‘paw’some fundraising journey

“For me the saying ‘hope is a community that stands together’ took on new meaning on the day. I’ve only been running for a short period of time and in that period I’ve never struggled with cramps, however any athlete will tell you it all comes down to the day of the race or event. That’s what happened when I hit the 50km point and every muscle in my legs started cramping (an experience I’ve had before).

“I saw my support runners go above and beyond the call of duty, sacrificing their own needs in order to help me carry on and make it to the finish line. My support crew also jumped into action coordinating with the support runners to ensure I had the right hydration, nutrition and first-aid support when I needed it; and I saw the amazing supporter from the community who came out and cheered, hooted and donated. It was in this part of the journey, where I truly saw a community standing together and demonstrate the true Comrades Spirit,” he said.

McCallum’s efforts saw him complete his run to achieve a comfortable Bill Rowan time.

Speaking on his fundraising efforts for the SPCA, McCallum said he was pleased to have raised more than R3 000 for the SPCA.

“After reading about the amazing work Alwyn Immerman and his dog, Humphrey have done for the SPCA I wanted to dedicate my race to the SPCA and I felt this was the perfect way to tie it all in,” he said.

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