As many of you know I lost my Dad very suddenly and unexpectedly on 19th September 2020.  He was an inspirational man who was always helping others and his loss has left a huge hole in my life as well as many others.  As part of my gold DofE I wanted to honour him by doing a year of fundraising for SARAID.  I have planned several physical challenges over the year and hope people will be kind enough to sponsor me.

I started my year in July with walking 1,000,000 steps in 50 days, this was followed by running 5km a day for 50 days and then cycling 500 miles in 50 days.  One of the biggest challenges was fitting this in around my already busy life.   This wasn't helped by injuries and covid isolations.  Trying to get my steps in whilst confined to home was challenging but Dad managed to pack so much into his life so I took inspiration from him and drew on his strength to get through it.

My 4th challenge was in April.  As Dad's favourite place on earth was the Isle of Wight I decided to circumnavigate this beautiful island.  The route was 72 miles, which I walked in 3 days supported by family and friends along the way.

Im going to end my fundraising year with the 3 peaks challenge.  I had hoped to do this with Dad in the future, we had many hiking trips away over the years making great memories. The 3 peaks is a fast paced and physically challenging adventure taking on the 3 highest mountains in England, Scotland and Wales in 24 hours.  This will really test my fitness and endurance but I know Dad will be with me all the way.  I'm also going to be joined by many of Dad's friends on this challenge.  I've been overwhelmed by the support recieved from his friends at the London Ambulance service, SARAID and Air Cadets.

My chosen charity is SARAID.  Dad was part of SARAID for 10 years and had become their team medical manager and was a well respected member of the United Nations INSARAG Medical Working group.  I am planning on joining SARAID too as soon as I turn 18.

https://spark.adobe.com/page/WaSCt5ROCh3Yl/

SARAID specialise in one of the most hazardous disciplines within Search & Rescue. They provide emergency disaster response in the UK and worldwide in the immediate aftermath of natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunami, landslides, extreme weather events and areas of structural collapse. Their team of dedicated, highly-trained volunteers are on standby 24/7, every single day of the year. Every penny raised is spent on Search and Rescue equipment, training and transporting the team to disaster sites in order that they can help those in need.