Ultramarathon man on homestretch 

This weekend sees, charity worker and Baptist Dr Mark Calder, aged 37, end his epic ‘Running Home 2019’ adventure of running 14 ultramarathons throughout this year.

During this time Mark of Garioch Church, a Baptist Union of Scotland fresh expression in Aberdeenshire, has covered 1,725 miles, tracing pilgrim routes across Scotland and Northern England.

His effort is to raise money for a project run by Embrace the Middle East, which supports refugees to return home and rebuild their lives in war-torn Iraq. 

Mark’s final run takes place on Saturday 16 November, covering 70 miles. He will run from South Queensferry, Edinburgh to St Andrews via the Fife Pilgrim Way. This run marks the feast day of the 11th Century Queen who opened up the ferry route for pilgrims to St Andrews between South and North Queensferry.

The distances of the runs have ranged in length from 45 miles to 340 miles, with some spanning over a number of days. This has been a gruelling challenge for Mark; who usually divides his time between working for Embrace the Middle East and teaching at Durham universities.

He comments, 'There have been some real struggles this year, running ultramarathons teaches you a huge amount. Running through the day into the night against a headwind, the physical pain or when it’s rained for days can really sap your mood, it’s intense on an emotional and mental level; it’s during these times that make me reflect on what I’m doing and why.' 



Based near Aberdeen, Mark is a husband and father of two with a lifelong interest in the Middle East. Having completed a PhD specialising on the region and spent 18 months living in Palestine, he now works for Embrace that supports those who have been displaced and affected by war, it is this passion for the region that has driven his current ambitious undertaking.

He continues, 'I’ve learned a huge amount from the challenges I’ve faced and have felt encouraged by people’s support and engagement with the project. With their support, I’ve been running in pursuit of a happier ending to a long, unhappy story in Iraq. It’s now or never for the families returning home, seeking to rebuild their lives, and it’s an enormous privilege for me to play a small role in supporting them.

'I’m inspired by the work the CAPNI project is doing in Iraq, it supports people who have endured a much longer, much more painful journey than mine. My hope is that from my small effort to shine a light on this cause that more people will be inspired and donate to help make a real difference to people’s lives in Iraq.' 

To celebrate Dr Calder’s homecoming, the end of Running home 2019, St Peter’s Scottish Episcopal Church in Edinburgh will be hosting a live music event, on  23 November from 6pm. Featuring rising star Ellyn Oliver and band, who previously appeared on BBC Radio, and Fiddle Me Timbers making it a night of ceilidh dancing.

For more information and tickets please visit Eventbrite