Jennifer Chard steps out for her first ever half marathon, spurred on by the memory of her younger sister. Tim Davey reports

Bristol civil servant Jennifer Chard has shunned the city's trains and buses for several weeks now.

Instead, she's run home from work and it's not just a short jog, either. Jennifer works on the northern edge of town in Filton and lives in the city centre.

The running has been part of her preparation for this weekend's Bristol Half Marathon, which will be a rather momentous event for her, because it's the first time Jennifer has ever participated in an event like this.

As she strides out along the route, one person will be very much at the forefront of her mind – her younger sister, Melissa.

Complications at birth meant that Melissa was left severely disabled and couldn't walk, talk or move. Last September, at the age of 21, Melissa died.

The Northern Ireland children's hospice in Belfast was, Jennifer reveals, "a pillar of support to both my sister and the whole family in the years before Melissa's death".

Which is why she's using the Bristol race as a way of raising cash for one of the main charities of this year's event, Children's Hospices UK.

"I have experienced at first-hand the important role that hospices play and how we must continue to support them. My mum still does voluntary work there to try to give similar support to other children and their families, and my dad has taken part in fundraising activities in the past."

Jennifer, aged 29, is the eldest of her family. There's a brother of 26 and another of 10.

"I have got a lot of friends who have run the half marathon before and it has been something I have always wanted to do, because I thought it would be a great achievement – but I never thought I would get to do it.

"However, when I saw the advertisement for the Children's Hospices UK and realised it would be run almost a year from when my sister died, I thought to myself, 'If I don't do it now for her I will never do it'.

"I go to the gym, but have never done street running before.

"On my first run I just didn't know where to go. So I recruited Pam, one of my friends who runs, to help me out. Our first route was around the waterfront up past the Pump House at Hotwells. It was two miles and I thought I was going to collapse.

"Everything was all seized up and I had to go and soak in the bath for an hour when I got back home.

"However, once you build up a level of fitness you do start to make rapid progress. It has taken me six months to build up to the required distance.

"Eventually, I began running home from my work in Filton, first off using a five-and-a-half-mile route. That became easy, so I extended my route, first to seven miles and then to eight-and-a-half miles. The girls at work bought me a big map to help plan the routes.

"I have already raised about £350 and I have talked my husband, Ian, an optician, into running, too. My husband's family come from Bristol so we'll have them and all our friends to cheer us on.

"It will be a passionate day, as Melissa died on September 17 last year, and the race is therefore less than a week from that anniversary.

"I will complete it. I had a sister who fought for her life constantly for 21 years, so if I cannot run for a few hours in her memory, I'm not trying hard enough."