Arnold Pickup was simply known as marathon man.
Arnold, who has died aged 86, was a veteran fundraiser who had raised tens of thousands of pounds for limbless armed forces veterans charity BLESMA along with other charities.
In 2014 by the age of 83 and a great grandad he had raised more than £20,000 by completing more than 400 running races, notching up more than 50 marathons as well as over 100 half marathons and countless 10k runs.
As a welfare officer of the Huddersfield branch of BLESMA he dedicated much of his time to visiting soldiers left injured in conflict and their families.
His nephew, Paul Pickup, said: “The impact Arnold Pickup’s life had on the lives of so many who knew him was, and is, immeasurable. He was, and is, a role model, who inspired so many to see life as a joy and worth living. He was more than a glass-half-full man; generally his glass was overflowing. At the age of 52 he took up running and pretty soon he was an ever-present at the Huddersfield Pennine marathon, running remarkable times for a man of his age.”
Arnold took part in races all round the world in Russia, Barbados and Malta.
His charity fundraising also helped the RNLI, Martin House Hospice near Wetherby and the Jane Tomlinson cancer charity appeal.
Arnold, of Dalton, served in the Merchant Navy and as a miner in Barnsley before working building motorways.
He then worked as a freelance JCB driver before retiring at 65.
Arnold leaves behind his long-term partner Gill Cunliffe and has children from two previous marriages along with grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Arnold’s funeral will be this Thursday, June 7 at Huddersfield Crematorium at 10am.
