Skydive success for Dorothy House!

On Saturday, 21 September, the Dorothy House Skydive Day was booked at Old Sarum, near Salisbury. 25 skydivers signed up for the event and everyone was so excited (and nervous!). However, in the days leading up to the event there were weather warnings for wind and rain and our hearts all sank. Would we have to cancel? Luckily, the day before, we received an e-mail to say the skydive was still on!

What happened on the day?

Everyone turned up at 9am and there was an amazing atmosphere with everyone looking fabulous in their Dorothy House t-shirts. All the skydivers signed in, received their briefing and were eager to go. The sky was dark and cloudy so we had to wait for a good few hours to get the right weather. At last, the clouds started to clear.

Finally, at 2.10pm, our first set of participants to skydive for Dorothy House took to the plane, all kitted up and ready to jump. All the spectators on the ground were made up of fellow jumpers, friends, family and even some care home residents, who’d come to support their three amazing staff members who were jumping.

We all watched the empty sky with baited breath…and then suddenly we saw lots of parachutes opening, high up in the heavens!  The skydivers got bigger and bigger and then they landed gracefully in front of us…to rounds of applause, cheers and whoops! We greeted them with waving flags, shouts of “yes!” and lots of hugs. The jumpers were absolutely beaming and so happy they’d taken on this incredible challenge! The skydivers then went back into the clubhouse to take off their jumping gear and to get their well-earned certificates. They then joined the crowds for celebrations (and some prosecco!).

This continued through the day. Overall, there were over 160 people skydiving, so it was incredible to watch the precision of it all. The professional skydivers, who our jumpers were each attached to, really treated each person individually and had great humour and kindness.

Our final two jumpers landed at 6.30pm, just as the light was starting to fade. One of our skydivers, Jan, who had travelled all the way from Kent, and had been there on her own for half the day (unfortunately her lovely friend had to leave). She was so lovely and waited to watch and cheer on the last jumpers. This illustrates true team spirit and how the Dorothy House team had bonded through the day. Jan then had to drive two hours home to get back to Kent!

Skydive for Dorothy House Hospice Care

Thank you to everyone who participated and for supporting the Hospice with your incredible fundraising efforts!

Want to skydive for Dorothy House? Register your interest today for the next Skydive Day at Old Sarum in Salisbury in September 2025. We have also have lots of other exciting events and challenges you can participate in.