Anita's 'happy hormones' fillip (From Wirral Globe)

Anita's 'happy hormones' fillip

1:04pm Monday 13th August 2012 in News By Geoff Barnes

WALLASEY mum Anita Cull is relying on “happy hormones” to sustain her on next month’s Great North Run charity challenge.

Anita, 47, who will be joined on the sponsored run by her university student son Mark Brooks, is tackling the half-marathon course in memory of her father Eric Cull, a former Liverpool-based businessman and ex captain of Bidston Golf Club.

Her road running exploits in the past have included the Manchester 10K and the Race for Life on two occasions.

She explained: “I used to do a lot of running but I stopped when dad became ill to help care for him. I was ill when he died in the Wirral Hospice in July last year. I told the doctor about my running and he told me to start again to release the ‘happy hormones.’ “It does so much more than any amount of pills and I feel so much better for it.”

She added: “Dad was lovely; he would do anything for anyone.”

She has launched the Heaven on Earth fund to raise cash for the hospice which provides specialised care and support for patients with severe and progressive diseases – usually cancer – where curative treatment is no longer possible.

Anita has already raised £635 towards a target of £1,000.

She observed: “The money needed for everyday care for patients and their families is astronomical and they rely greatly on donations and fundraising events for this.”

She trains six days a week along New Brighton promenade, interspersing the running with “Boot Camp” exercises on the grassed sunken seafront areas.

The race takes place on September 16 and Anita will be supported on the day by husband Timothy Roy and Mark’s girlfriend Sophie Tennison from Bridlington, Yorkshire.

To support Anita contact www.justgiving.com/ANITA-CULL-ROYO