MORE than a million steps have helped raise thousands of pounds for a local good cause.

Steps were counted as CrossFit Haddington encouraged people to pack Neilson Park and take part in One Million Metres for Meals.

The special fundraiser encouraged people to lace up their walking shoes – or running shoes – to raise money for Our Community Kitchen.

Sarah Macdonald, owner of CrossFit Haddington, was delighted with the success of the event, which raised £7,049.

She said: “It was a great day and so many people from the community turned up.

“It was an awesome day and we had a great turnout.

“We had not only people from CrossFit Haddington and Our Community Kitchen but also Haddington Rugby Club and St Mary’s Primary School came and did laps.”

A total of 1,385,600 steps were recorded during the day, and there are hopes that another fundraising event could be held in the future.

Our Community Kitchen, which meets in Haddington Bowling Club, was formed five years ago.

The group meets four times a week and encourages people to come together round the dinner table to enjoy a homemade meal.

By doing so, the organisation hopes to bring together different sections of the community and to tackle loneliness and social isolation.

Elaine Gale, founder of Our Community Kitchen, thanked everyone for their support.

She was full of praise for CrossFit Haddington, which was launched in 2019, and said they were “incredibly grateful” to them and it was “really incredible what they have done to pull together for us”.

She said: “It really is heart-warming.

“It shows how supportive our local community are and it is overwhelming.

“That is how it feels to me and the people I work with feel exactly the same.

“Overwhelming is the only word I can really use for how it feels.”

It was not just members of CrossFit Haddington who were counting their steps for the good cause.

Members of the town’s running club also headed to the town centre park while players from Haddington RFC also did their bit ahead of a 43-26 victory over Langholm.

Refreshments were also offered up on the day, while there was a bouncy castle and Beyond Boundaries East Lothian were on hand as well.