Runner Mike Delap (pictured) is raising money for the charity that was responsible for his adoption by taking on this year’s London Marathon.
Mike, aged 30, was adopted through leading children’s charity, Adoption Matters, and will be joining 30,000 participants on 26 April in support of the work it does for children and young people across the North West, Yorkshire and the West Midlands.
Moira and John Delap from Bramhall in Stockport, Manchester, adopted Mike through Adoption Matters in 1984 when he was a young baby. They already have three birth children, Jonathan, Hannah and Nick.
Mike said: “My parents and I have always been very open about my adoption and a few years ago I started running as a hobby and decided to raise some awareness and a little money for a cause close to my heart. Naturally, I chose Adoption Matters as my main beneficiary and I ran the Manchester 10K a few years ago, but this time I’m going for a bigger challenge!
“Adoption Matters helped me find the great life and upbringing that I have enjoyed and I’m doing this in an attempt to give back and hope that people may think about adopting a child into their family.”
Mike and his wife now live in Sheffield, where friends and colleagues have helped exceed his fundraising target of £500, and has set a new target of £1,000. Mike’s fundraising page can be found at: https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/mikedelap
Jenny MacQuire, Marketing Manager at Adoption Matters, said: “We’d like to thank Mike for all the hard work he’s put into training to raise awareness of the work we do.
“Mike is testament to the fantastic grounding that a loving adoptive family can provide and we hope that his story will encourage others to think about adopting.”
For more information about adoption and details of how you can fundraise for Adoption Matters, please contact the team on 0300 123 106 or click here for a free information pack.