On the 23rd of April 2023, Lynn Whitnall the Director of the Zoological Society of Hertfordshire at the Hertfordshire Zoo, Paradise Wildlife Park and Trustee of The Big Cat Sanctuary in Kent will reach a monumental achievement as she runs her consecutive 20th London Marathon. This incredible feat will be in aid of the President’s Sporting Club, Essex Disabled Sports Foundation as well as the Zoological Society of Hertfordshire and The Big Cat Sanctuary for which she is CEO.
Lynn Whitnall’s first London Marathon in 2003 was in aid of the NSPCC, as she sat on their fundraising committee. Lynn had never run before and began jogging up her driveway in the early hours of the morning so that nobody saw her as she learned to run. Even though, 3 weeks prior to her first marathon Lynn was diagnosed with breast cancer she still went on to complete this run and has never looked back. The following year she ran again, this time running for Breast Cancer UK charity to give back to the support she received. Over the years, as well as NSPCC and Breast Cancer UK, Lynn has also run for Children with Leukaemia, Isabel Hospice, MacMillans and in recent years has run for the Presidents Sporting Club and the zoos charities.
Not only is this Lynn’s 20th London Marathon, but alongside this, she has also swum the English channel as part of a relay team, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, Reach Everest base camp and Mt Kala Patthar and was even chosen to carry The Queen’s Baton for the Commonwealth. With so many more fundraising achievements completed, Lynn has become an inspiration not only to her family and employees at Paradise Wildlife Park but also to the local community raising incredible awareness and funds for vital charity work.
The Hertfordshire’s zoo CEO Lynn continues to take part in a variety of challenges with family, friends and zoo colleagues and this year will be running her 20th London Marathon alongside her son Tyler Whitnall star of children’s tv show One Zoo Three who will also be running for the President’s Sporting Club, Essex Disabled Sports Foundation as well as the Zoological Society of Hertfordshire and The Big Cat Sanctuary.
Lynn continues to be an inspiration and shows that anything is possible. If you would like to donate to her run, you can via her JustGiving page.
