O’Neills staff ready to ‘run the legs off themselves’ for Foyle Hospice at Waterside Half Marathon

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Staff from Derry’s O’Neills store in Waterloo Place are this week putting the finishing touches to their preparations to run the Waterside Half Marathon to raise funds for the Foyle Hospice.

The group of 13 runners have already raised close to £2,000 ahead of race day and they have been overwhelmed by the public’s response to their efforts.

It will be a first Half Marathon for many of the young team, with the exception of their Manager Caroline Casey who is a relative veteran with two Waterside Halfs under her belt.

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“We have our long runs all done and all that’s left for us to do is run our legs off for the Foyle Hospice on September 1.” said Caroline,

Members of O'Neills staff's 'Team Derry' who are running the Waterside Half Marathon for the Foyle Hospice on September 1.Members of O'Neills staff's 'Team Derry' who are running the Waterside Half Marathon for the Foyle Hospice on September 1.
Members of O'Neills staff's 'Team Derry' who are running the Waterside Half Marathon for the Foyle Hospice on September 1.

“Everyone in our city has a positive story to tell about the critical care family members receive through the Hospice.

“Our store is located in the heart of Derry and the Foyle Hospice are an organisation at the very centre of that community.

“Playing a key role in community life is a high priority for O’Neills, so to do an event as embedded in the community as the Waterside Half was a no brainer.”

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“The Derry Minor footballers held a meet and greet in our store last weekend, and we had a fundraiser as part of that.

"We were overwhelmed by the support we received.

“Everyone wants to support the Hospice as they know they’ll be there for them in their time of need.

“That has really inspired us to push on with our training and run well next Sunday.”

The team will be wearing specially commissioned O’Neills red ‘Team Derry’ vests on the day with the slogan ‘Running every step for the Foyle Hospice’ on the back of the vests.

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While they are largely new to running, many of them play team sports around the city and their Manager expects them to have no difficulty getting around the challenging 13.1 mile course.

“They’re an active group and most of them go to the gym or play sport so they came into it with a good base level of fitness,” she revealed.

“A lot of them are still at school or college and our youngest member Rose Grace is just 16.

“We’ve been doing our own bits and pieces and in recent weeks and a lot of our long runs have been as a group.

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“Ciaran Mullan, who was Head Boy at St Joseph’s College this year, has been taking them out for speed sessions ahead of their taper.

“We have a team Whatsapp group where we’ve been sharing our runs and that has helped us spur each other on.

“We’ll start the race together as a group, some of us will run at our own pace but we will all stay at the finish line to cheer each other home.

“The excitement is really starting to rise this week, but we won’t lose sight that we are doing it for a charity who is there for our families and friends when needed.”

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The 2024 Waterside Half Marathon is set to be the biggest in its history with an expanded field and a number of new features.

Event organisers Derry City and Strabane District Council have announced an exciting new route that takes in all four of the city’s bridges and starts and finishes in Ebrington Square.

The event is sold out and race day information is available on the event website at derrystrabane.com/whm

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