🕷️ Sponsor My Fear – I’m Facing a Tarantula to Support K9‑SAR

My name is Sharon, and if you know me at all, you will definitely know one thing about me for certain!

I have a true, debilitating and lifelong spider phobia.

NOT a mild dislike, a full, overwhelming and paralysing fear. I can’t look at photos without feeling sick, I absolutely freeze if one is in the room, and I know that everyone who knows me will be absolutely convinced I can’t do this….... including me.

In fact a friend once said after I had seen a spider and set off running "I have never seen anyone reach that speed without training" 🤣

But I’m going to try to do this!

Why?

Why would an arachnophobe do this?

Because .......

Something happened quite recently that made me desperately want to do something big.

My friend Alison’s beloved poodle "TWIGGY" escaped from her garden and went missing. For more than two long weeks, Alison lived every dog owner’s worst nightmare; I helped her search high and low, I saw her live it 😪 It was heartbreaking 💔

During that awful time, K9‑SAR, a local volunteer search and rescue team stepped in and supported her in ways I will never, ever forget and that impressed me more than I can express.

They were simply marvellous.

They helped with social media posts, posters, sniffer dogs, drones, cameras, thermal imaging, mapping, search teams, enquiries, and constant emotional support. They coordinated sightings, searched day and night, and never once asked for anything in return.

They gave Alison hope, strength, and care when she needed it most; it was pretty inspiring to witness.

Twiggy was sadly found deceased, and although the ending was heart-rending, Alison didn’t go through it alone because the team at K9‑SAR stood beside her every step of the way and still are! Every one of their volunteers was truly inspiring!

AND..... they do this for every dog, every family, every search, across North, South and West Yorkshire, all on a completely volunteer basis.

What a group!

So!

In memory of a sweet little poodle called "TWIGGY" and in awe of this amazing bunch of volunteers I want to give something back.

To raise money for K9‑SAR, I’m going to face my biggest and most enduring fear and will let a Tarantula sit on my hand 😱😱😱😱

Crikey did I really say that publicly? 😬😱😱😱

I AM going to do it:

- Safely

- Supervised

- Timed

- Filmed (I will show it here)

The large and unintentionally, heart stoppingly terrifying lady I will do this with is called "Spiderella" and she is a Chilean Rose Tarantula. She is 9 years old and comes courtesy of Michala Smith of LION LEARNERS Animal Educational Experiences Limited.

Michala and Spiderella are giving their time fee free, in order to support this fabulous organisation, so a huge shout out to them too 👏👏👏👏👏👏

As you put your hand in your pocket, please remember, this is absolutely TERRIFYING for me.

I am not keen on heights, but let me tell you, my abseil from Wakefield Cathedral that benefitted the Pinderfields Scanner Appeal was EASY in comparison to this ...... and my Fitbit showed my heartrate at 170 during that little adventure 🤭😬

I’m doing this because K9‑SAR deserve every bit of support we can give them and I am asking for your help!

They rely entirely on donations to fund:

-Drone batteries and maintenance

-Fuel for search vehicles

-Trail cameras and night vision equipment

-High powered torches and radios

-Sniffer dog training and welfare

-Posters, mapping tools, and search resources

-Volunteer safety gear

-Emergency response equipment

They save dogs! 🐕

They support families!

They bring hope!

And sometimes, sadly they bring closure, as they did for my friend 😪

If you’ve ever loved a dog, or admired the people who never stop searching, PLEASE sponsor me - as much or as little as you can afford!

Help me turn my deep seated and enduring fear into something good for Twiggy, for Alison, and for every dog still out there waiting to be found.

Thank you for believing I can do this. I’m still not sure I quite believe it but I’m doing it for them!

🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷

THIS is what I will face!!!!!

Thank you for taking the time today to pay a visit my JustGiving page. Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving, they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails.

Once you donate, funds will go directly to K9-SAR and you will be helping me to help them and in turn they will save many dogs!