Next year will be a huge year for me; having just celebrated
my 30th year in the ambulance service - 20 of which begin in January has been with the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance, it will also be the year that I take on a massive challenge in memory of my beloved parents - both of whom I lost to
cancer. As a Paramedic on the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance I deal with serious illness and injury every day of my life, but when it came to my own parents, I genuinely struggled to come to terms with the loss. In a bid to deal with my grief, I set myself the goal of taking on the 100km Sahara Trek Challenge in 2019 - the Charity's 25th year. Mental health is a very personal but also extremely fragile thing and I am so grateful to have had the support of some amazing family, friends and colleagues during what has been an extremely difficult time for me. By setting myself a personal goal - to undertake the trek and raise - £2,650 for the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance in the process, I feel I am making a fitting tribute to my parents and giving myself the closure that I badly need. I look forward to sitting at the top of a sand dune and raising a glass to my mum and dad. The fact that the money I raise will go to the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance is also very important to me. As the longest serving crew member on board the Ambucopter, I have personally seen the effect the Charity has on people's lives. It is something I feel passionately about and want to help to ensure there is always an Air Ambulance available in Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire for the next person who needs it. Please support me in this very personal challenge, one that will make a huge difference to both me and to the Charity. Every pound donated really does count, so thank you.

Life-changing moments happen every day here at the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance and over the years we have been privileged to be part of so many peoples lives across Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire.Next year we want to give people the opportunity to experience their own life-changing experience by joining our very first Sahara Trek Challenge.You will witness sights other people will never see, stars so bright they hardly seem real, miles of uninterrupted golden sand, making friendships along the way that will continue long after the trek has finished.The route will allow you to experience the beautiful region of twisting wadis, untouched windblown sand dunes, breath-taking sunsets, deserted villages and deep-water wells frequented by nomads. This really is the experience of a lifetime!