On Saturday 20th April, I will be doing a 300ft bungee jump in honour of my brother, Jake, who passed away in December. I’m taking this opportunity to raise money for a charity that is close to my family’s heart. Wessex Heartbeat is a charity that funds Heartbeat House which is across the road from Southampton General Hospital. The house provides multiple kitchens, bathrooms, lounges, single and shared bedrooms and helped 2100 families in 2018 alone. It is specifically aimed for the use of families with a loved one in Cardiac Care, making sure that their time is focused on being with their loved one.

This house enabled my mum and I to be within walking distance from the hospital and able to visit Jake at any time of the day without having to worry about travel or accommodation. Without this charity and the funding that goes into Heartbeat House, my family would not have been able to spend as much time as we did with Jake in his last weeks of life.

I understand that a lot of people donated towards Jake’s memorial bench, to which my family and I are very grateful for, so I am not expecting to raise a huge amount of money, however, if you do have a spare couple of pounds it would mean so much to know that the money raised from this bungee jump is going towards supporting other families who are in need of Heartbeat House and the work of Wessex Heartbeat.

When a loved one is ill, the most precious thing you can receive is time. Heartbeat House gave us time with Jake, and for that we will all be forever grateful to them.

Thank you.