Dorothy House Fundraising Wing Walk 2023

On the May 18, with the sun shining and no wind, eleven very brave Dorothy House supporters arrived at RFC Rendcomb Airfield ready to take on a fundraising Wing Walk challenge!

Above, Fiona, Marc, Samantha-Rose, Rachael and Lewis.

The Wingwalk

Each flight lasted ten minutes and saw each courageous soul strapped to the top of a biplane, zipping around the Airfield, up and down and side to side.

Many family and friends turned out to cheer on those taking to the skies, with a great view from the dedicated viewing space at the Airfield. Dave, our pilot for the day, made sure to fly each wing-walker low, and right past those who came to watch.

Why take on a Dorothy House Wing Walk challenge?

For Marc and Samantha-Rose it was a particularly special day. The Wing Walk fell on the one-year anniversary of Dawn’s death, Marc’s wife and Samantha-Rose’s mum. Dawn had been receiving care from Dorothy House when she died. They both jumped at the opportunity to take on the Wing Walk on this special day as a brilliant way to raise funds in Dawn’s memory.

Based in Keynsham, the local community really came out to support Marc and Samantha-Rose, with Marc’s dentist even chipping in to support the pair.

Rachel, another of our brilliant Wing Walkers, was raising funds in memory of her husband Nick, who died in May 2021. Rachel said:

“Dorothy house helped us in so many ways, from their nurses in the hospital helping us with care strategies and pointing us in the direction of support, to the end of life team that visited us to talk through Nick’s options and last wishes, and finally to the bereavement sessions for the girls where they made a very special memorial vase with the Dorothy House team.”

Rachel took the opportunity while in the skies to spread some of Nick’s ashes as he was such an adrenaline junkie.

The grand total…

Huge congratulations to all eleven Dorothy House Wing Walk participants: Rachael, Lewis, Fiona, Marc, Samantha-Rose, Rachel, Irulan, Robin, Kat and Vicki. Together they have so far raised an incredible £16,709.00!

This amazing contribution will help us to continue to deliver outstanding end-of-life care. One of the ways we do this is by equipping our Hospice at Home Carers with Comfort Packs for those patients and families that might not have those essential supplies at home. This pack includes a toothbrush and toothpaste, wipes, pads and incontinence sheets and costs £12 each.

This means that the fundraising of our eleven brilliant Wing Walkers could fund the purchase of almost 1,400 of these packs, supplying the Hospice at Home Team for the next few years, allowing that extra level of care when needed most.

Take on a challenge!

Taking on a challenge for Dorothy House really helps us in our mission to ensure that everyone has access to outstanding palliative and end of life care. If you’d like to take on a challenge for the Hospice, please get in touch with our Fundraising Team on communityfundraising@dorothyhouse-hospice.org.uk.

Check out our challenges here