Liz Lumber & Sue Fry
Who We Are
Sue’s & Liz’s runs events journey began when they set up the Eastbourne junior parkrun in 2018 to encourage children aged 4-14 to become active. Their legacy continues as every Sunday, children head to the seafront to take on the 2k challenge with the motto ‘It’s a run not a race with a smile on your face!’ At the time of the launch, their son Fin was only 8, and since participating in junior parkrun, his running journey has blossomed and he is now a county and South–East standard athlete.
As well as the flying Fin, Sue, and Liz are members of Eastbourne Rovers athletics club and are well-established runners. They have competed to county-level standards as well as cropping up regularly at parkrun, road races, and cross countries.
By day Sue is a sports massage therapist & qualified pt; she also spends much of her free time as an athletics coach for Eastbourne Rovers. Liz works for Alstom as Head of Operations for Depot Drivers. In addition to their busy lives, Sue and Liz took on the challenge to set up the Eastbourne 10k in 2018 & have raised money for many charities including the Eastbourne Sea Cadets, St Wilfrid’s Hospice, Aspens & Matthew 25 Mission.
why do they do it?
Liz says “Eastbourne is a natural host for runners so let’s continue to use it to its full potential and give our local runners something to shout about. I have been a runner for thirty-plus years and still have that motivation to carry on for as long as I can. It’s an honour to be part of the Eastbourne Runs and I hope that our positive ethos shines onto our entrants so they keep coming back for more!”
Sue says “Our intention is, and will continue to be, to put on events to encourage people of all ages and abilities to keep fit and active whilst raising money for deserving charities”
FUNDRAISING
Hosting the first running event in 2018, Sue, Liz & the Eastbourne Runs team have raised money for various charities, whilst organising running events for everyone to enjoy.
The Eastbourne half marathon’s locally chosen charity for 2024 was The Matthew 25 Mission. Without financial contributions from donations, the hospice could not provide the deserved support to patients and families under their care. Eastbourne Runs were delighted to donate £8,237, the highest amount the hospice has received to date from any event. Combined with 65 runners just giving pages, the total exceeded an incredible £21,000. St Wilfrid’s Hospice is the chosen charity for the 2025 Eastbourne half marathon.
As per 2022, the chosen charity for the 2024 Eastbourne 10k was Matthew 25 Mission. Eastbourne Runs was delighted to donate £2624.00. At Eastbourne’s Brodie Hall, the charity provide around 175 meals a day. They offer a safe, warm space for breakfast, lunch, or both. Each week at least 160 of their guests are helped in more depth by their key-working and outreach teams, either with housing, benefit advice, addiction advice and support or anything else they need.
Charities Sue & Liz have raised money for include, Aspens, JDRF, Eastbourne Sea Cadets, Amaze, St Wilfrid’s Hospice & Matthew 25 Mission, donating over £20,000 in total.
If you are a local charity, and wish to be considered by Eastbourne Runs, email Sue or Liz on eastbourneruns@gmail.com