Strides for Syria - Auckland Half Marathon edition

Ellie and I will be running the Auckland Half Marathon on the 28th of October and aim to raise money for this very worthy cause.

Since March 2011, Syria has been affected by ongoing conflict of an unprecedented scale in recent history. Over 13 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, and nearly 3 million of these are in hard-to-reach areas due to arbitrary restrictions on movement and insecurity. As such, families who have been displaced from their homes and communities continue to face unimaginable fear and uncertainty over their future.

Many of these people have fled into the northern Idlib region on the Turkish border, where they move into informal camps with little or no outside help. Essential materials - cooking sets, mattresses, blankets, shelter support, clothes and more - are in short supply.

ReliefAid, with our partners ShelterBox UK, is set to provide shelter and clothing assistance to 10,000 Syrians in these hard-to-reach areas in our upcoming distribution. These are people who would otherwise receive no assistance, because our dedicated Syrian team is willing and able to go where others cannot, or will not.

All money raised will directly support families in these conflict zones, going into the operational costs of the distribution, making every little donation count.