The belated Bushy Christmas 10k and 5k took place on a frosty and very cold Sunday morning on 12 January, after Storm Bert had forced its cancellation at the end of November. Despite the event being rearranged, 53 hardy souls, turned out to run in support of Kingston Hospital Charity, raising over £10,000.

Some of the staff were joined by partners and friends running in support of a number of different departments at Kingston & Richmond NHS Foundation Trust, including maternity, theatre and day surgery, anaesthetics, outpatients, dietetics, speech and language therapies, children’s diabetics, intensive care, physiotherapy, cardiology, oncology, pre-assessment and quality improvement. They were joined by the NHS trust chairman and chief executive, Phill Hall and Jo Farrar, along with non-executive director Damien Regent.

The event also provided an opportunity for staff to come together to remember Serge Lourie. As well as being the ex-leader of Richmond Borough Council, Serge had a very long-standing association with the NHS trust, having previously served on the board, including a brief stint as chairman. He was also a very active supporter of Kingston Hospital Charity and an avid runner, so it was fitting that his son, David, and grandson Max were able to take part, fundraising in support of the hospital.

Fundraising Manager, Rupert Meredith-Jones said:

“It was fantastic to see so many colleagues turn out on a freezing Sunday morning in such good spirits to take on either the 5k or 10k run, while raising money for their respective services. We were also delighted to be able to use this run as away of remembering Serge Lourie, who was such a good friend to Kingston Hospital over many years, and that his wife Julia was able to join us together with David and Max. I know a number of staff who signed-up last November were disappointed because they were not able to make the rescheduled date. Hopefully the event won’t be disrupted by adverse weather when it takes place towards the end of this year.”