Following on from what has been a life changing 2017 myself (Podge) and my 2 brothers Fran and Micheal have taken the mad notion to go for a "quick" 26.2 mile run around Dublin City on the 29th October 2017 by undertaking the Dublin City Marathon.     On Thursday the 12th of January 2017, my 8 year old son Fionn was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma which is a form of cancer which attacks the lymphatic system. Over the first half of 2017, Fionn completed his 18 weeks of chemotherapy treatment in St John's ward in Our Lady's Children's Hospital Crumlin and is now recovering very well. He has returned to school, is playing sport again and doing all the fun things that young boys should be doing. None of us are runners but the amazing physical and mental strength that Fionn showed during his treatment along with our desire to help raise funds for 2 fabulous charities was the inspiration for us to start training for the marathon.     Each year, roughly 200 children are diagnosed with cancer in Ireland and many endure years of treatment. Whilst undergoing his treatment in St John's Ward, Fionn got amazing support from the services provided by the Childhood Cancer Foundation and Aoibheann's Pink Tie. A visit to St Johns Ward is a truly eye opening and scary experience where you see so many very sick children and it was through the wonderful services provided by these 2 organisations, along with many others, that make the days a bit easier for children and their family.     Sadly each of us will be touched by cancer whether it be a child, a parent, a spouse, a sibling, a friend or somebody who knows somebody. In our short time in St John's we are have got to know children who have sadly since gained their angel wings.     We have been training 4 times a week since July and are aiming to complete the course in hopefully under 4 and a half hours (wind, hills, weather etc in our favour). We hope you can dig deep and support these two great charities who provide much needed support for children with cancer and their families. From all of us, thank you very much for your generosity.        #kidsgetcancertoo    #fightlikeachild