Chris’s marathon commitment will make him miles better – and help charities too
Freemasons help Oliver with £1,400 donation to help with cost of prosthetics
July 24, 2026
Pounding parkrun pavements between now and next April’s Boston marathon is a journey involving much more than distance for our member Chris Tandy – he’s doing it to save his life.
Weighing at 23 stones (or 146kg if you prefer) when he made the commitment to the race makes Chris, pictured above, an unlikely marathon runner – but he’s determined that won’t stop him! He said: “I’m running in next year’s Boston marathon – the Lincolnshire one, not America! It’ll be a journey of 26 miles, but it’s much more than that. It’s a journey towards improving my physical and mental health, and putting money into Freemasons’ charities that support the communities in which we live.”
And he’s gone public with the commitment because telling the world what he planned makes it impossible for him to back out. “I have no choice but to go through with it now,” he said.
The negatives involved in Chris’s work and lifestyle were causing problems. His job in cardiology – he’s a specialist in heart pacemakers – had him working 16 and 17-hour days, driving all over the country, and his weight had crept up to that 23 stones. (Not that you can easily tell; Chris is tall; there’s just a lot of him…)
“My heart was struggling, and would occasionally stop completely. I was a whisker away from needing a pacemaker myself, and I’m only 46.” There was even the time when his heart stopped on a flight home from holiday. “The cabin crew were reaching for the defibrillator; because of my ‘day job’ I was able to reassure them they didn’t need it.”
Chris, Charity Steward in his own Scunthorpe-based Industry Lodge, is raising money for Lincolnshire Freemasons and Lincolnshire Mark Masons to invest in good causes within our communities. Says Chris: “Please get in step with me on the journey with a little sponsorship. This QR code takes you to my dedicated fundraising page. There’s no admin fee, so every penny you commit goes into charity where it will be thankfully received and faithfully applied…”
