A team of 15 runners will be be lining up at the start of Sunday’s Great North Run in memory of Jesmond resident Janice Gregory, and to raise funds for Maggie’s cancer charity.

Gregory's Girls get ready for the run. Left to right: Helen, Susan, Lucy, Joanne, Graeme, Holly, Ailsa, Gillian

Janice, who worked in NHS managerial roles for 32 years, lived on Otterburn Terrace in Jesmond from 1995, but lost her battle with her illness in February this year.

The team, Gregory’s Girls, is made up of some of Janice’s closest friends, and has already raised more than £4,000 in funding for Maggie’s Cancer Charity.

Maggie’s provides practical, emotional and psychological support for those diagnosed with cancer, and is planning to open a new centre for the North East, located near to the Northern Centre for Cancer Care, at Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital. It is estimated that this £3million centre will serve some two million people in an area running from the east coast, across to Cumbria, and down to the River Tees.

The Gregory’s Girls team – which incidentally comprises men as well as women, has been fundraising since June, holding cake sales, sponsored walks, Zumba events, and even bar crawls.

The full team includes Graeme, Holly, Joanne, Ailsa, Susan, Helen, Guy, Louise, Anna, Ruth, Danielle, Lucy, Sam, Hannah and Rachel. Find out how they get on at http://gregorys-girls.blogspot.com/

Let us know your GNR stories. Who is running? And for which charities?