Rochelle's race in gran's memory

BIG-hearted fun runner Rochelle Edwards is pounding the pavements in preparation for a gruelling challenge in memory of her grandmother.

The 23-year-old social work student will be taking on the 13.1-mile Yorkshire Half Marathon on April 10 to raise funds in memory of Sheila Oxborough, who died suddenly aged 80 from hypertensive heart disease, a heart condition linked to high blood pressure.

Rochelle had a close relationship with her grandmother, having lived nearby and it was not until after her death that Sheila’s family found out she had been living with heart disease.

“You would never have guessed that Sheila was 80, or that she had an underlying heart condition. She was the rock of the family and a truly beautiful person, both inside and out,” she said.

Rochelle is taking on the challenge with her boyfriend, Elliott Roberts (24), and her brother-in-law, Jamie Carter (26), both of whom were also extremely close to Sheila.

Donations were collected at her funeral for Heart Research UK, to help fund the charity’s work into pioneering medical research that aims to have an immediate positive impact on the lives of patients.

Rochelle said: “We have chosen to raise funds for Heart Research UK as it’s a local charity that will help people near us through the research they fund into heart disease.

“We feel the more that is known about heart disease and its warning signs, the more lives that could be saved.”

To make a donation, visit: https://www.justgiving.com/teams/Elliottjamieandrochelle.