Deal dad Gary Dunster knows all too well how useful his London Marathon sponsorship money will be – helping the families of deaf children.

His 19-month-old son Isaac was born with a hearing impairment that has since been diagnosed as 40% deafness.

He and his wife Jodie attended a free weekend with the National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS) which gave them invaluable help in understanding the condition and letting them see they are not alone.

Now the father of two from Walmer Gardens, a security guard at Discovery Park and wellness coach for Herbalife, is training to raise as much cash as he can for the NDCS and he is appealing for readers’ sponsorship to help him reach his goal of £2,000.

"I want to raise as much money as I can, especially after we had that weekend away” - Gary Dunster, whose son Isaac was helped by the NDCS

He said: “I had an email from NDCS and it said ‘Would you be able to run 26.2 miles in the London Marathon for us?’

“I thought about it for a couple of days and thought ‘Yeah’.

“I felt fit enough to do it. I want to raise as much money as I can, especially after we had that weekend away.”

Both Isaac and the couple’s eldest child Grace, six, attended the get-away. The experience was geared towards the whole family. And Gary’s commitment to running the marathon is also a whole family commitment because of the amount of time Gary is devoting to his preparation.

He said: “Training is hard. I have had one injury – a stress fracture after the Deal half marathon which put me back about three weeks.”

With the day looming, on Sunday, April 26, Gary is keen to attract much-needed sponsorship and hopes to hold a cake sale at Grace’s school soon where donations of cakes and biscuits will be appreciated.

You can sponsor Gary Dunster by clicking here and searching his name.