As a business that operates offices in a number of large cities across the world, CloudSense recognises that homelessness can be a major issue in these places, and is committed to giving something back.
That is why we were proud to make a 3-year pledge to be involved with The Big Issue Foundation, helping us live up to our company principles of trust, innovation, empathy, accountability and confidence.
A Stormy Start…
This year, we enlisted eager participants from our London team to take part in the 5k and 10k Chase The Moon run at Olympic Park, to raise vital funds for The Big Issue Foundation, which ended up taking place in the midst of a heavy storm on the evening of 16 February (Storm Eunice was just a couple of days offshore).
Many of our runners had started the year couch-bound after a season of over-indulgence, but dragged themselves onto the treadmill, built up stamina in the weeks leading up to the event and were ready to take on the challenge, hitting the pavement not far from the very stadium where Usain Bolt won gold at the 2021 Olympics.
Despite colleagues cheering us on, we sometimes worried the wind and cold would dampen the mood. Nevertheless, the weather conditions and the support from the marshals created an exhilarating and adventurous feeling that motivated us to reach the finish line as quickly as possible. Being in a larger group of friendly participants emphasized the importance of collectivity especially when it comes to doing something for a great cause.
It’s safe to say that no preparation can get you ready for the adrenaline rush experienced from running in the Olympic Park. As we aren’t professional athletes, we were faced with many realizations during our experience: for example, one runner didn’t realise that they were only halfway done when they passed the start point – we still had a lap to go, and a couple of us forgot to attach the timer tag to our shoes, meaning we didn’t get an official time!
