One of my friends, Ben Kaye, is running the London Marathon to raise funds for a good Jewish charity. Well, I say he is one of my friends – I’ve actually only met him three times. But of all the people I have met only three times – a that group includes David Beckham, Tom from McFly, Rachel Stevens, Ron Prossor and countless Israelis! – Ben is my clear favourite. (Probably Tom second.)

Ben has always dreamt of running a marathon and next month his dream will come true. He is raising funds for Nightingale. Based in London, Nightingale is a care home for older Jewish people, where physical, emotional, intellectual, cultural, religious, spiritual, social and creative needs are catered for with sensitivity on an individual basis.

As Ben writes: ‘Nightingale holds a very special place in my heart. It is where my two beautiful grandmas lived the last days of their lives. Nightingale gave them so much happiness, love, warmth and a sense of being. Don’t be mistaken, Nightingale is not a sad or depressing place. It is a happy, fun, wonderful place to visit, and I feel blessed that it came in to my life. My grandmothers would have ended their days in sadness if it wouldn’t have been for Nightingale.’

Sounds wonderful. Good on you, Ben. I remember when we stood together at a pro-Israel demonstration. As you waved your Israel flag you also sang, absolutely belting out the words to Am Yisrael Chai. I wrote this post about the two Marathons I’ve run, but some better advice would be that if you approach your Marathon with the same gusto as you did your singing you’ll romp through it!

You can support Nightingale’s work by sponsoring Ben here.