At 11 years old, she has not only taken part in The Sun-Herald City2Surf, presented by Westpac, for three consecutive years, she has also raised close to $8000 for Manly's Bear Cottage, the only hospice for children in NSW.

Eden has been running and fundraising for Bear Cottage since she lost her friend Joanne Lee to brain cancer in 2015.

"I do it for my friend. Joanne died from brain cancer at the start of year 3. I just wanted to do something to give back to Bear Cottage where she and her family had to spend a lot of time when she was sick," Eden said.

Following her friend's death, Eden told her parents she wished to do some fundraising.

"Joanne's family were there for quite a long time and Eden recognised the pain families go through when dealing with terminal illness as well as the importance of having expert care and soothing surroundings," Eden's mum Holly said.

"We all got a real sense of the tragedy and Bear Cottage was a beautiful place for a family going through a terrible time."

Eden initially floated the idea of washing cars to raise money, however she instead landed on City2Surf, something she could do that would also involve her family.

As well as tackling Heartbreak Hill every year and raising funds for Bear Cottage, Eden also takes part in the run to remind Joanne’s mother, father and little sister that her memory of her friend still burns bright.

"The first year we did City2Surf, Eden chose to give her medal to Joanne's mum. It was a very emotional moment," Holly said.

In exchange for her efforts, Joanne's family presented Eden with a plaque that said "I did it for Joanne".

As Joanne would have been in year 6 this year, Eden has invited and inspired her entire school year to participate in the 2018 City2Surf with her.

So far about 30 families have signed on, plus Eden's teacher. They are all swapping training tips and running memes in a Facebook group. They are also planning to raise funds for Bear Cottage in the weeks leading up to this year's race to add to Eden's already impressive kitty.

Eden doesn't have any race-day regime or superstitions. Instead she will once again wear a photo of her friend pinned to her shoulder as she treks the 14 kilometres to Bondi.

"It's nice to have her near my heart," she said.

The City2Surf is on Sunday, August 12.