Luke Butler successfully completed the London Marathon on 27 April in 3hours 11minutes and raised £3,161 for SaTH Charity to give back to the Neonatal Unit where his daughter, Ella was cared for in 2022. Luke was one of 56,000 taking part in this year’s TCS London Marathon.
Ella, was born at the Heartlands Hospital in Birmingham at 24 weeks and four days, weighing 1lb 10oz. She spent 108 days at three different neonatal units, one of which was the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford.
Ella is a happy and healthy three-year-old and celebrated her 3rd birthday in April. Ella and Luke came into the unit to present the cheque to the team who treated Ella during her 8 weeks stay in the unit, including Corrine Dacosta the Neonatal Ward Manager, Ashleigh Stevenson, Lead Clinical Practice Educator and Eilidh Greer, Practice Education Facilitator.
Luke said of the marathon “It was a hot day for the marathon this year and whilst this was good for spectators, it was tough as a runner, but when the run got difficult, I thought I cannot give up because Ella never gave up.”
Corrine Dacosta, Neonatal Ward Manager said “We are grateful to Luke for taking on the London Marathon to give back to the unit where his daughter was treated 3 years ago. We are always looking to improve the department for our parents and caregivers so this money will be used to improve the area patients used for expressing and preparing milk for their babies.”
Julia Clarke, Director of Public Participation said “Thank you to Luke and his supporters for donating to SaTH Charity – I’m sure Ella is really proud of her dad. Having a baby on the Neonatal Unit can be an emotional rollercoaster and our aim is to improve the environment so parents can focus solely on their baby.”
Luke’s JustGiving page remains open so you can still donate, link to the page below: