Canary Wharf jogger urges fellow Wharfers to join him

By Simon Hayes on May 7, 2008 9:00 AM |

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THIS IS the man who proved Wharfers have big hearts when it comes to raising money for charity.

Alun Thomas, deputy global head at HSBC, raised a magnificent £5,000 in last year’s British Heart Foundation Canary Wharf Jog.

Alun, 49, hopes to exceed that total in this year’s event on June 4, and he’s throwing the gauntlet down to the other banks in Canary Wharf to try and beat him.

He said: “I want other banks to take me and HSBC on. We raised more than £100,000 last year but we can do even better this time. It’s a great cause and a really fun event and the banks can be at the forefront of some really significant fundraising.”

Alun’s efforts saw him pick up The Wharf Trophy for raising the highest individual amount, and he revealed his success was due to revising his strategy.

“I thought about how I was getting sponsorship and realised I wasn’t making the most of the internet and email,” he said. “So I asked my PA to contact people using the web and instead of the usual £200, I raised £5,000. There’s so much money in The City and Canary Wharf it’s important to use every method to try to get some of it donated to charity.”

And Alun revealed this year’s run will have extra significance for him.

He said: “My father died of heart disease on June 4, 1998. His death raised my awareness of the problem and I’ll be thinking about him when I do this year’s run.”

To register for this year’s Canary Wharf Jog, log onto www.bhf.org.uk/ londonjogs