Steadfast Steadmans
Thatcham postwoman, Julie Welland, took part in the Thatcham Santa fun run together with her two children and her dad. Between them, they raised more than £100 for Cancer Research UK.
‘One of my closest friends was diagnosed two years ago with breast cancer,’ said Julie. ‘She had to go through chemotherapy and then a double mastectomy. She’s on the mend now, thank goodness, as the cancer has gone.’
Julie’s 76-year-old dad, Chris Steadman, was a postman many years ago in Ealing, West London. Her brother, postman Andrew Steadman, currently works at Cheltenham delivery office.
‘Andrew was the youngest postman back in the day starting in Hanwell, London, on his 16th birthday as a young cadet,’ said Julie. ‘He has since transferred to Cheltenham and next year celebrates his 50th birthday, so he’s been working for Royal Mail for a long time, since leaving school.’
Julie and her family joined 300 other children and adults on the 5k route through the streets of Thatcham.
‘We all started the race together but my daughter, Emily, got a stitch and needed to walk so I stayed with her while my dad and son, Chris, ran ahead,’ said Julie. ‘Normally I’m quite competitive and would have run ahead, but knowing this was a just fun run meant I wanted to stay with Emily so that she had fun too.
‘Once her stitch had gone we continued jogging down the streets and around a park which was very muddy and had become just like an obstacle course due to the puddles and all the tree roots sticking up out of the ground. I think everybody had to walk at one point as the mud was so wet and slippery - not ideal conditions, but so much fun slipping and sliding and trying not to fall over!
‘To make things worse, it then started raining and our Santa costumes weren’t waterproof! However, the rain didn’t dampen our spirits and fortunately didn’t last too long. It was lovely as we were able to speak to several other runners, with everyone running for their own chosen charities.
‘My dad and son both finished four minutes before our own 45 minutes and it was great being present with medals from the mayor at the finishing line. I’m looking forward to many more years with Royal Mail, but not so many years doing fun runs as I was built for walking not running and it took a couple of days for my legs to stop aching after the run!’
