Young football hopefuls participate in the marathon. Photo: Darrin Zammit LupiYoung football hopefuls participate in the marathon. Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi

Puttinu cares and so do the Maltese people.

Hundreds of football and volleyball enthusiasts braved the sweltering heat yesterday as the 10th 60-hour marathon in aid of the Puttinu Cares Children’s Cancer Support Group gathered momentum at the Marsa Sports Grounds.

While football and volleyball volunteers, including a team from Allied Newspapers Limited who played against One Productions, sweated it out on the sun-drenched pitches throughout the day, thousands converged on Marsa as a sense of national solidarity blended with the infectious enthusiasm of the army of Puttinu Cares helpers to create an uplifting atmosphere.

The invaluable support Puttinu Cares give primarily to children suffering from cancer and their families as well as adults who travel to the UK for medical treatment, has captured the heart of the Maltese population whose generosity over the years has made the impossible possible.

Raising funds to finance the 16 apartments Puttinu Cares have built near the Royal Marsden Hospital in Sutton is the principal objective of this annual marathon. The project has been completed at a cost of €4.4 million of which €3 million have already been paid.

Rennie Zerafa, one of the pillars of Puttinu Cares, is confident that the proceeds from this year’s marathon will enable the organisation to repay the remaining €1.4 million.

“Our volunteers work from their heart and this allows us to put on this nice feast,” Zerafa told The Sunday Times of Malta.

“Thanks to the generosity of the Maltese people, I’m optimistic that what we set out to complete over a 10-year period will be achieved in just three years.

“Our target for this marathon is to collect €1.4 million and I believe we’re not far.”

The marathon, which also features non-stop entertainment from the country’s leading singers and musicians, concludes tonight at 10pm.

Donations can be made via fixed telephone lines (5160 2007, 5170 2006, 5180 2008) or by SMS (5061 8939 - €6.99).

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