Coventry-based Haroon Mota, Fundraising Manager for humanitarian charity Penny Appeal, is a finalist in the 2017 Just Giving Awards, nominated for the Just Giving Life Changer Award.
Described by his team as Mr. Mota-Vator, Haroon has undertaken a number of personal challenges this year alone. One of the biggest was to run four marathons in just four weeks, with the goal of raising £20,000 to build a solar water power center to provide both water and electricity to poor and needy people living in The Gambia. His final fundraising total for this was £28,000. “I decided to embark on the challenge in memory of my late father who was tragically killed in a car crash,” Haroon explained. “This challenge seemed a fitting honor to his memory, he was my motivation.
“We often take the blessing of water for granted. In Africa, dirty diseased water is a real killer. Running all of those miles in training and in the marathons was extremely tough, but the struggle for life without water is nothing in comparison. My goal was to provide the gift
of water, and I’m so pleased that the construction of the clean water project is already underway. It will make a huge difference”
Haroon, not just the ‘Marathon Man’ has also this year led a team to climb Ben Nevis raising £30,000 and in December will embark on a challenge leading a team climbing Kilimanjaro, a challenge that has already seen £90,000 raised so far for Penny Appeal. I love fundraising myself, but it gives me great pleasure when I can bring people together to join me. I want to inspire and motivate others to have the same level of drive that I do when it comes to charity and helping to transform lives. In my hometown, more and more people are joining me each year at the Coventry Half Marathon, getting active and fit for great causes. Small Change can really make a big difference.
“After such an exhausting marathon campaign, I am so excited and thrilled to have been nominated for this award,” Haroon added, “to be in the final three from 31,000 nominations really is an honor and I couldn’t have done this without the incredible support I have received, I hope now that those people will vote for me”
The winner will be announced at a ceremony taking place on 21st November at The Brewery in central London. There is still time to vote as the public will determine the winners so Penny Appeal is encouraging everyone to vote for Haroon at http://pages.contact.justgiving.com/awards/2017/voting/
#Running4Dad #JGAwards
