KIRSTY'S BRIGHTON HALF MARATHON

A young highly skilled South African - a consultant surgeon at Cape Town´s prestigious Groote Schuur Hospital - is awarded a Fellowship at a major London hospital. There she performs operations, conducts consultations, is often on standby whether on-site or not, and also teaches young medical students.

What does someone in her position do in those precious few free-time moments? She trains to run the Brighton half marathon that takes place on Sunday 26 February for Topsy!
Last year Dr. Kirsty Berry completed one of the most gruelling marathons in the world – the Comrades in Kwa Zulu Natal. Kirsty has worked in some of the toughest situations that arise in South Africa, so meeting challenges successfully are clearly part of her approach to life.
We are hoping that Kirsty’s Brighton challenge will inspire others to lend their support to her in raising funds for the Topsy Foundation UK. A prime aim of the Foundation is to support the impact that its independent South African namesake makes. Topsy SA works in some of the most underdeveloped rural areas south of Johannesburg, spread over some 30 miles where unemployment is close to 40% and public transport almost non-existent
In its 24 year history Topsy SA has overcome countless challenges, including the continued support for vulnerable children and households during the Covid pandemic.

Current work includes:
• Support for Early Childhood Development – some 2000 children in pre-schools and early primary schools are in the programme
• 10,000 people in a food security project – hundreds of vegetable gardens, made and maintained by individuals and communities, with Topsy SA providing seeds and the expertise of a trained gardener
• Preventive health screening for hundreds of children every month
• Training for pre-school staff so that they can obtain much needed professional qualifications