Meet Jimmy Lloyd
Jimmy Lloyd is no ordinary 47-year-old businessman, he’s made a pledge to run 5k-a-day to help the children and families who receive support from Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice.
Jimmy lives in Bristol with his fiancée Gemma, a physiotherapist for The Royal Ballet, and their four children. His business provides support and recruitment to finance and investment companies and he has three offices worldwide, in Bristol, London and Chicago. Jimmy enjoys boxing and football but most of his time these days is spent running.
The motivation to take on a challenge
Jimmy’s journey to becoming a Noah’s Ark running superstar began in 2020 when Gemma’s sister Hollie, who was also a physiotherapist was diagnosed with Glioblastoma, an aggressive type of brain cancer where the average survival time is between 12 and 15 months. After Jimmy experienced the devastation of Hollie’s sudden illness and subsequent death, he started thinking about mortality especially as around the same time Gemma’s mum was diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Jimmy decided he wanted to do something positive which coincided with him picking up a copy of Rob Delaney’s book, ‘A Heart That Works’. Some people in his life thought it was an odd choice of book for Jimmy, who wants to read about a young child dying when they have a three-year-old and a baby on the way? But read it he did.
Jimmy describes the book as being, ‘Powerful, bizarrely uplifting in parts and horrifyingly sad in others.’ The book details the support that Rob’s son Henry received from Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice at the end of his life after a devastating brain tumour diagnosis. Jimmy recognised that Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice is something very special and wanted to help us in our mission, to help children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions make the most of everyday.
The challenge
As a runner already, the first and most obvious idea was a marathon, but he decided he wanted to do something that he felt was reflective of the situation facing most of the children and families that receive Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice support. To get up, every day, and face the same thing, again and again and so the 5k-a-day challenge was born on the 1st January 2024. Jimmy has a well-trodden route around Bristol but has also completed his miles in Chicago, New York, and The Cotswolds.
The road hasn’t always been smooth, Jimmy caught a virus and had to do his miles on a treadmill but six months in and Jimmy is relatively injury free and determined to complete the challenge and raise £10k for Noah’s Ark!
You can donate to Jimmy’s fundraising challenge here.