Whenever Aaron Plummer looked for work he found his cerebral palsy made it hard for him. But thanks to Tottenham Hotspur and Mencap he now has a job and is looking to repay those who have helped him.
"Every time I handed in my CV to places, they would not even contact me or would just say no," explains Aaron. "They saw my learning disability before they saw me."
But a careers open day at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium brought immediate success with employment there.
"After all these years of wanting a job, it was like, 'Yes!'"
Because he was helped by Mencap, who provided Aaron a life coach, he decided to show his gratitude for the charity by raising funds for it through running the London Marathon.
Aaron's inspirational behaviour was such that Spurs organised for club legend Ledley King to make a surprise visit to see him. It got even better when King showed video messages of support from first-team player Harry Winks.
Eric Dier joined Winks in motivating Aaron for his marathon, which he had to do around his neighbourhood because of the pandemic, speaking with him before and after the event via video call.
He completed the event in an incredible time of five hours and nine minutes and so far, he has raised more than £32,000.
"Thank you so much for all of this money, it's just been crazy," Aaron says. "It's an amazing cause and I'm proud to be in this much pain for a charity that's done so much."
You can donate to Aaron's fundraising effort by visiting his London Marathon page.
