GasanMamo Insurance has lent its support to Chris Mamo’s ‘20 Marathons in 20 Days for 20 Beds’ initiative by sponsoring a bed for the charity event.

Mr Mamo (rigfht) is a 33-year-old Anglo-Maltese personal trainer who spent 12 years in the British Armed Forces, teamed-up with Dr Klown to raise funds for 20 new beds across the four paediatric wards of Mater Dei Hospital.

In an effort to make a difficult time slightly more bearable, by giving parents of hospitalised children a better night’s sleep, Mr Mamo ran 20 marathons across the Island during March and April. As he said on his fundraising page: “Having one of your children hospitalised for a length of time is hard enough for any parent, but adding restless nights does make the situation even more difficult than it already is. It was clear that parents spending the night, a week or a few months with their hospitalised child would benefit from wall-mounted pull-down beds.”

“It didn’t take us very long to get behind this wonderful cause,” said Julian Mamo, managing director at GasanMamo.

“Sick children are one of the most vulnerable groups in our community and Chris’s initiative is a brilliant way of bringing the community together to help the families of hospitalised children.”

Inspired by Patch Adams (1998) – a semi-autobiographical film about American physician, comedian, author and all-around clown Hunter ‘Patch’ Adams – Dr Klown is an NGO operating from Mater Dei Hospital. Set up in 2010 by a group of like-minded individuals endeavouring to bring joy, laughter and smiles to the faces of sick children, Dr Klown ascribes to the age-old tenant that ‘laughter is the best medicine’.

Clown doctors are not doctors, but volunteers who undergo rigorous training to entertain sick children and bring laughter to their families and hospital staff during a difficult time. Throughout the 20 marathons, Mr Mamo was cheered along by Dr Klown volunteers.

GasanMamo is a big advocate of corporate social responsibility, believing that by giving back to people they are enriching the lives of the greater community.

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