Dear friends!

I’m running the half marathon for the first time in my life for a reason more important than the personal challenge of completing a run.I have pledged to raise money for young children with special needs.

Diagnosis of autism is difficult for any family; in Russia, it can be shattering. No hope of integrating into society, and a medical establishment unfit for purpose; a majority of Russian people with autism are being condemned to a life in isolation.

The majority of doctors, still interpreting the disorder to be some relation of schizophrenia, address the problem with heavy medication.

Doctors give unbelievable pharmaceutical cocktails to little kids which you would never find recommended to a child anywhere else.  In the West 10% of autism is treated with medication; in Russia it's virtually 100%.

The money will go to building occupational therapy rooms designed for children and young people with special needs. These rooms, absolutely essential for these kids’ physical, sensory and emotional development simply don’t exist in Russia yet.

It would mean the world to me if you would donate - every little bit helps!