HD5K Charity Run Goes Virtual, Raises £40K for MND Association

Largely due to going virtual this year, the annual HayesDavidson 5K (HD5K) charity run met its goal of raising £40,000 (nearly $56,000) for the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association.

The event previously was held in Hyde Park in London. However, the switch to the digital format enabled more of an international affair, drawing participants from Poland, Italy, the United States, Australia, and across the United Kingdom.

The HD5K run is hosted each year by Hayes Davidson, a London-based architectural visualization studio, to honor its founder, Alan Davidson, who died in 2018 from motor neuron disease (MND). MNDs are a group of progressive neurological disorders that includes amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

“This was my second year taking part in the HD5K run and it was wonderful to be given the opportunity to connect with the other runners, and the cause, through technology when the pandemic stopped us from meeting in Hyde Park,” Sally Light, CEO of the MND Association, said in a press release.

“The HD5K run is a wonderful and fitting way to bring colleagues together to raise awareness and funds for the fight against MND and help ensure Alan’s vision and energy continue to be celebrated,” added Light. “We are so grateful to everyone involved for the continued support.”

Participants walked or ran in their own neighborhoods and donated at least £20 ($27), which will support MND Association programming. The decision to hold this year’s event virtually, and open it up to more people, was precipitated by the funding shortfalls that many organizations, including the MND Association, experienced due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to HayesDavidson.

“The HD5K has held a special place in all our hearts here at Hayes Davidson, and whilst we would have loved to have been all together this year in Hyde Park again as we did back in 2019, we felt that a virtual run was more appropriate for 2021,” said David Bullock, Hayes Davidson’s joint managing partner. “This [was] very exciting for us, however, as we [were] able to open up our invitation to join our run to our entire community worldwide!”

Some 5,000 people in the U.K. are thought to be living with MND, and an estimated 1,100 are diagnosed annually.

The nonprofit MND Association works to improve care and support for individuals with motor neuron disease, their families, and their carers.