Son to run London Marathon for ‘phenomenal’ St Benedict’s Hospice which cared for his mother in her final months

A grieving son is to run the London Marathon to raise money for St Benedict’s Hospice in Ryhope after the “phenomenal” support given to his mother and her family after the devastation of a terminal cancer diagnosis.

Dave Schindler grew up in Sunderland, but now lives in Suffolk.

In February 2021 he lost his father, Dave, to Covid before his mother, Edna, was diagnosed with cancer in April of the same year.

During this traumatic period, Edna, who lived in Sunderland, spent time being cared for in the hospice as well as being supported at her aunt’s home where she was living with and being cared for by her sister following her terminal diagnosis.

During this period Dave also returned to the city to help care for his mother.

He said: “My mam was terrified about going into a hospice. She thought that was where you went to die.

“However, whenever she was unwell and took a turn for the worse, St Benedict’s would always build her back up to go back to my aunt’s house, where she wanted to be.

“On the day she collapsed and died, she said she wanted to be taken to the hospice, rather than the hospital, which was a total turn around from being terrified when she first went in.”

It was a conversation with Edna during her final days which resulted in Dave wanting to raise money for the hospice.

He said: “When someone is dying you have very open and frank conversations and my mother said rather than people buying flowers for her funeral, she would rather people donated money to St Benedict’s as they had always been there for her.”

Two years on from his mother’s passing, Dave decided he wanted to do more to support the hospice who rely on charitable donations for the sevices they provide.

Dave entered the ballot for the 2024 London Marathon and after gaining a place, he has started training and set up a JustGivingPage.

He said: “I always used to be a keen runner and wanted to do a marathon and so after gaining a place for London 2024 it was a no brainer to raise money for St Benedict’s.

“I’ve started training on the treadmill and can’t thank them enough for making my mam happy and providing support at her darkest time.

“I want to give something back for the support they provided.”

Although Dave hasn’t set a target, he has already raised nearly £500 on his JustGivingPage.