Oldham's 'Running Man' recognised at Buckingham Palace

Afruz Miah had just returned from Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, on another fundraising mission for charity when his wife and son informed him about a special letter.

Afruz said: “I was worried until they showed me the envelope – I was thinking, what have I done wrong?

“So it was a surprise, but at the same time it was such a proud moment”.

Afruz's BEM award. (Image: Afruz Miah)

Afruz was awarded a BEM in the Queen’s New Year’s honours list for his incredible service to charities within the Oldham community and beyond.

The BEM is awarded to those who make a real difference in their communities with a "hands-on" approach.

Afruz said he received his medal only a few weeks ago but wants to extend his thanks to the people and organisations who have helped him to achieve so much.

He said: “I couldn’t have done this on my own.

“It was everybody getting together from different communities, backgrounds and faiths.

“It just goes to show if you work sincerely and with the right intentions, you can get a lot done and people come together to make a difference”.

Afruz attended a special tea party at Buckingham Palace to celebrate his services to the community.

The former maths tutor said most of his charity work started during the pandemic amid lockdown to inspire others to keep going.

His initiatives included "virtual runs" involving people from different towns and cities and raising money through skydives, bungee jumps, bake offs, mountain climbs and numerous food challenges.

A major drive behind his fundraising efforts involve running - and lots of it.

He has run from Oldham to London while fasting during Ramadan and completed the London marathon.

He also ran eight half marathons in eight cities across the UK in one month.

And another endeavour saw the so-called “Running Man” raise a whopping £500,000 for people in Oldham as well as national and international causes.

As well as the special invitation and BEM, Afruz was one of 70 local people in Oldham to carry a torch at the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.

In recognition of his incredible community efforts, Afruz was selected to be one of 70 torchbearers at Oldham’s Jubilee celebrations – and he was invited to attend a tea party at Buckingham Palace.

He said: “That was another surprise.

“That was quite nice – it was the first time I have ever been invited and I felt so proud representing Oldham.

“I am an Oldhamer, I moved here when I was five, so I felt quite proud being there amongst people from up and down the country."

More than 2,000 people had received a special invitation to attend the tea party at Buckingham Palace, and Afruz even brushed shoulders with some celebrities at the event including Emmerdale star Eric Pollard.

Afruz said Mr Pollard was "friendly" and "approachable" at the party.

The 48-year-old moved from Bangladesh to Coldhurst aged five before moving on to Coppice, but much of his humanitarian work stretches overseas.

He has travelled to Burundi, Bangladesh, Turkey and Lebanon completing various charitable work.

Afruz has since left education to commit to his charity work full-time where he now works with the Global Relief Trust (GRT), a Muslim UK-based charity.

Still, he wants to see more recognition for the many people who work tirelessly in their communities.

He said: “Unfortunately, it doesn’t get noticed until you receive a big award.

“I believe there are a lot more people doing a lot more work who are going under the radar because it’s not been highlighted.

"People do a lot of hard work which goes unnoticed."

The tea party had a generous turn out with people all across the country in attendance.

When asked what was next on his fundraising agenda, Afruz said it would be “something crazy”, but that remains top secret for now.

He added: “There are so many things we can do – but it’s all about engagement and getting people on board and doing your bit for humanity, both locally and nationally.

“But, I can’t drop anything out just yet."