A dad who has not exercised for more than 10 years is hoping to run 99.9 miles in memory of a Bracknell paramedic who took his own life.
Stephen Flower was inspired to raise money for mental health charity Mind following the tragic death of Christopher Ealden this year.
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Stephen knew Chris as part of his 'extended ambulance family' and their children went to the same pre-school together.
He said: "After losing Chris, it made me re-evaluate my lifestyle and how hard-hitting it is on a young family losing their father and husband.
"So I set out initially to lose weight then thought I'd set myself a challenge to remember Chris and to raise awareness and support Mind."
The dad from Bracknell plans to complete his challenge by December through social distanced walks with friends and running on his own.
He has even used the help of NHS running app Couch to 5k to help him get back into running again.
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The distance of 99.9 miles is to honour the emergency services.
He said: "I've not ran in over 10 years so it's a bit of a shock to the system. I've started out doing the couch to 5 k to get me back into it.
"As long as I don't suffer any injuries, I imagine and hope I'll be able to reach the 99.9miles fairly easily, I'm hoping to go beyond that target. My initial target on my just giving was also £999 but there's no way I could complete 999 miles though!"
Mental health charity Mind was chosen by Stephen as they help support emergency services staff and the public.
At the time of writing, Mr Flower has raised £1,029 which is beyond his £999 goal.
He added: "My family have been massively supportive with my decision to do this, and also Chris's wife Luisa gave me her blessing as well.
"The support I've received from everyone has been phenomenal, even having total strangers reaching out to ask if they could join me for a walk."
Visit: justgiving.com/fundraising/steve-flower to donate.
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