Approximately a tonne of clothing was collected at the start of the Great North Run which will be recycled to help raise funds for the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS).
On Sunday 10 September after all the runners had crossed the start line of the world’s biggest half marathon, several pieces of clothing were left behind.
Over 20 people, including staff from GNAAS and volunteers, filled vans with tops, jackets and bottoms that were scattered across the runners assembly area.
Tracey Wright, events lead at GNAAS, said: “We managed to collect approximately a tonne of clothing, which was mainly tops. It wasn’t as much as we collected last year, but this was to be expected after the hot weather we’ve had recently, so we saw fewer people bringing extra clothing.
“We’re still really pleased with collecting almost a tonne of clothing and this will now be recycled by our Trading Company team to generate vital income which will keep us flying.”
Approximately 400 people ran the Great North Run to raise money for GNAAS, including Mrs Wright, and the collection of sponsorship money is still ongoing.
Mrs Wright said: “The Great North Run generates our biggest event income. On Friday, from the online sponsorship alone, we were just shy of £100,000 which is just phenomenal. The amount that was raised at that point was enough to fund 22 missions which is potentially 22 lives saved and 22 families kept together.
“The additional funds raised from the clothing collected at the start of the race was the cherry on top of an incredible day. We really appreciate everyone who left clothing at the side for us, and all the people who took on the distance yesterday for GNAAS, they are literal life-savers and I can’t thank them enough.”
GNAAS does not receive government funding and needs to raise £8.5m a year to remain operational.
To support the charity, they operate a recycling service Monday to Friday, where members of the public can book in a collection of their unwanted clothing or books, which is then recycled, and the funds generated from it are used to support the operations of GNAAS.
This service is available across the North East, North Yorkshire and Cumbria and can be booked by filling out a short form on our website.
Alternatively, the recycling team can be reached by contacting them via GNAAS’ Facebook page facebook.com/GNairambulance or by calling 01325 308 139.
Donations can also be dropped off on-site at the charity’s headquarters, which is Progress House, Urlay Nook Road, Eaglescliffe, TS16 0QB.
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