A teacher from Tipton Primary School will soon be tying up her shoe laces as she prepares to run and walk for 24 hours at Powderham Castle in June.

Naomi Garrick, 52, will be taking on the Conquer24 challenge at Powderham Castle this weekend (June 5-6) and raising money for Rethink Mental Illness, a charity that works to transform the lives of people severely affected by mental illness.

Naomi, who has lived in Sidford for 23 years and is a member of Sidmouth Running Club, (known by SRC members as Nutty Nomes), said: “I am really excited about this challenge, which will be the biggest in my life. Running has really helped my mental health and I know how much this charity can support others, but they are in great need of financial support.”

On Wednesday (May 26), children from Tipton Primary School Foundation Stage, who are taught by Mrs Garrick, had the chance to put on their own running shoes. The pupils, aged three to five years old, took part in a fun run around the school grounds, running for 30 minutes each. The youngsters also made a ‘smile tree’, which was placed along the route, with runners having to smile every time they passed it.

Naomi, who says ‘I have always had a great love and passion for running’, has run a total of 12 marathons and holds two Guinness World Records for the fastest bride and doctor to run a marathon.
Training over the past month has seen the mum of three and wife to King's School deputy head, Mike Garrick, notch up 116 miles over the course of four weekends in preparation for Conquer24.

On the day of the main event, Naomi will be setting off on her continuous circuit of the five-mile loop of Powderham Castle from 12.00pm on Saturday and will finish at 12.00pm on Sunday. A number of fellow SRC runners will also be taking part.

The fundraising target of £1,300 has almost been reached with £1,150 raised so far through Naomi's JustGiving page. To show your support go to: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/naomi-garrick