Identical twins Isabella and Olivia Robson ran the Junior Great North Run to raise money for the Allerdale and Copeland Autism Support Group, in honour of their six-year-old little brother, Isaac, who has autism.
The nine-year-old 'mini carers' of Isaac completed the 4km run in 26 minutes, and have raised £560 on their Crowdfunding page, with more money still to collect. After completing the run, Isabella and Olivia "felt very tired", according to their dad, Joe, who also said, "it seems like it hasn't dawned on them how great their achievement is".
The caring sisters independently decided to participate in the Junior Great North Run, and typed the description and plea on their sponsorship page by themselves, writing, "our little brother was diagnosed with autism three years ago [and] we all live with the challenges autism brings to our family on a daily basis".
They continue on to say, "we love our little brother and help and support him in all he does".
The Allerdale and Copeland Autism Support Group have greatly helped the Egremont family, organising soft-play for children with autism, and helping families and children feel comfortable during their time playing together in an understanding environment.
Wendy Askew, organiser of the support group, explained what is done for families with autistic children: "our aim is to support parents/carers of children and adults with autism and associated conditions. We offer guidance and support in a non-judgemental setting".
As well as their 'try before you buy scheme', allowing families to test the effectiveness of expensive items, such as weighted blankets, before spending money on them, the group, "also provide autism and family-friendly activities in the holidays for children and their siblings".
Regularly seeing the positive impact these autism-friendly activities have had on their brother, and the whole family, is what made the St. Bridget's Primary School students want to raise money for the Autism Support Group.
Talking about his kindhearted daughters, Joe said, "it's amazing to sit back and watch how great they are. Seeing them running, and raising so much for autism support makes me so proud".
The compassionate young girls "love their brother unconditionally" and are still accepting donations to their Crowdfunding page for the Allerdale and Copeland Autism Support Group here.
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