Jesse Chambers, from Perth, is about to embark on a monumental task: running 31 marathons in 31 consecutive days to honour his mum, Karen, and raise vital funds for brain cancer research.
“My mum was honestly one of the most beautiful people I knew,” says Jesse. “The first thing I think of when I think of Mum was her smiling, and I don’t think I’ll ever really forget that.”
Karen was an active, vibrant person, and a joy to those who knew her.
In 2013, after returning from a family holiday “not feeling quite herself”, she was diagnosed with glioblastoma – the most common and aggressive form of brain cancer in adults.
For Jesse, life changed overnight
“I’d never really seen my mum sick, so it was pretty big shock as a young kid…her being diagnosed and what that meant. For me personally, it was a complete 180. Life just automatically became different,” he says.
Karen passed away in 2016, three years post-diagnosis.
“I was very fortunate to have her as a mother, and I was lucky to have the years I did with her,” says Jesse.
But brain cancer changed almost every part of her life.
For Jesse, one memory has stayed with him more than any other.
“If we could get her to walk around the island in the kitchen, that was a good day.”
Watching someone who had always been active lose the ability to move freely changed the way he sees the world.
“Watching mum try and get herself just to be able to walk again made me realise how lucky we are just to be able to move our bodies,” he says.
“What would she have given in that moment to be able to run, or go for a swim, or do those things?”
Today, almost a decade after losing Karen, that perspective is driving one of the biggest challenges of Jesse’s life.
From 31 July to 30 August, he’ll run 31 marathons in 31 consecutive days while continuing to work full-time, raising funds for Cure Brain Cancer Foundation and the research that’s urgently needed to improve outcomes for people diagnosed with brain cancer.
For Jesse, though, the challenge has never been about running.
It’s about making his mum proud.
“She’ll forever be the reason that I want to push myself further or harder or challenge myself in any sort of way. I want to make every sacrifice that she made for me worth something.”
Why 31 marathons in 31 Days?
After narrowly missing his goal of running the Melbourne Marathon in under three hours last year, Jesse started thinking about what he could do next.
He wanted something that would make people stop scrolling, ask questions and, most importantly, start conversations about brain cancer.
“I wanted to think of something that someone who doesn’t know me would look at and think, ‘What the…?'”
Running 31 marathons in 31 days was his answer.
Not because it sounded fun.
Because if enough people stopped to ask why, more people would hear Karen’s story — and more people might choose to support brain cancer research.
Why Cure Brain Cancer Foundation?
For Jesse, supporting research was never in question.
I’m not going to be the one who cures it, but if I can help raise money towards it, then I think I’ve done my job.”
Every dollar raised through Jesse’s challenge will help fund world-class brain cancer research, bringing us closer to better treatments and better outcomes for future families facing a diagnosis like Karen’s.
How you can help
Jesse knows not everyone can make a donation.
“If anyone’s in a financial position to donate, that obviously helps so much. But I understand not everyone is.
There’s so many other ways you can help, whether it’s sharing posts, liking, interacting, reaching out or coming for a run.
The more people who want to come for a run, the better…and I’ll never say no if you want to bring me a croissant.”
