This April, the Winter Maintenance Team will be supporting Ground Control's ‘Charity of the Year’, honouring our colleague, Simon, by raising funds for the RNLI – a Charity close to his heart. The determined fundraisers will be: Lauren Matthew, James Donnelly, Emily O’Keeffe, Geoff Lewis, Shelly Ralph, Lyndsay Burns, Jamela Akhtar, Jonny Cordingley, Rachel Munro-Sale, Louise Devine, Pauline Hartley, Rebecca Wilkie, Deborah Coulson, Alison Curle, Louisa Inman, Vanessa Anbari, Anais Kutjesi, Aqib Hussain, and Cheng Ngo.

The team will be organising a series of events throughout April, including:

2,000km collective Walk/Row/Paddle/Swim over the month

Across the team, over the course of the month, everyone will be walking, running, rowing, swimming, or paddleboarding as far as they possibly can in order to go a total distance of 2,000 km, 10 km representing each year of the 200 that the RNLI has been saving lives in British waters.

Working from the Bath – Wednesday 9th April

And if just a quick dip or an icy shower aren’t enough from you, James Donnelly will be spending an entire work day performing his role from his bath tub. But it won’t be a toasty affair with candles and bubbles, instead, on the day you will be able to donate £1 to drop an ice cube into his watery workspace. So if he has ever been slow to reply to teams, ignored your phone calls, or been cheeky over an email, make sure you show him how much you appreciate him!

Boat-Themed Bake Sale – Wednesday 16th April

If you like cakes, boats, or the colour blue, come and sample the delights provided by Anais, Alison, Rachel, Vanessa, & Pete, baked to perfection, and all themes around the charity and the natural habitat of a Lifeboat.

Easter Egg Hunt – Wednesday 23rd

Donate a few quid to enter our Easter Egg Hunt, and try to outsmart Anais and all of her hiding places around the B’cay office. You could come away with some delicious treats in exchange!

London Walk – Friday 25th April

Did you know that the busiest RNLI station in the whole country is actually in London? Running 24 hrs per day, 7 days a week, 12 months a year the Tower Lifeboat Station, located on the Victoria Embankment, and covering the most dangerous section of The River Thames, from Canary Wharf to Westminster Bridge. The team will be showing their support, by walking all the way from The Isle of Dogs, past the Lifeboat Station, crossing the river at Westminster, then walking all the way back down the river to the famous Rotherhithe Docks.

Dying of the hair - last week of April

Deb Coulson will be dying her hair pink, lilac or peach the last week of April in support of the RNLI. Look out for the photos!

Cold Plunge / Ice Bucket Challenge

There will be a special pledge in exchange for a combined donation total of £73 (Ground Control’s Birth Year!) – just put the name of the person you want to see do it, and if enough people join you, and the magic number is hit, they will perform either a Cold Water Plunge, or an Ice Bucket Challenge – or double it (£146) and Lauren will get in the North Sea! This should really help them get to grips with the bitter temperatures experienced by those who find themselves adrift in treacherous waters.

Every donation, no matter the size, will make a difference. Over the course of the year, the RNLI saves the equivalent of 1 person every single day! Unfortunately, the same number of people will also be lost to drowning across the British Isles. With your help and donations, the RNLI can keep up the good work they already do, and more importantly, every single donation increases the chance of an extra life being saved, and bring those tragic statistics down. In the Winter Team, we have keen Open water swimmers like James, Canoers like Rebecca, Mermaid Impersonators like Anais, and some of our members have even had their own experiences being rescued from the water, such as Aqib who was saved from drowning, and Geoff who was taken back to shore after going adrift on his body board.

And as an added incentive, Ground Control will match EVERY donation, so the more you donate, the more they have to pay up!