Fifty brave souls will be throwing themselves out of a plane this weekend (24 July) to raise money for the Down’s Syndrome Association (DSA). The #50for50 event was planned for last year to mark our 50th anniversary. It’s been postponed until now, and those taking part are raring to go.
‘I’ve never done a skydive before and I’m scared of heights but as a family, we wanted to raise money for the Down’s Syndrome Association as it supported us with invaluable information as we started our journey with Cian. He has shown remarkable strength and resilience in his first 19 months and therefore I wanted to push myself to my limits, to hopefully raise money to support other families.’
Emma Tilley’s son Cian was born in July 2018 and has had a tough start to his life. He’s endured four bowel surgeries and also spent time in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit. He’ll be there to support his mum on the day.
Trevor Woodward and his wife Stephanie will also be jumping in honour of their daughter Paighton. Trevor is a superstar fundraiser and himself and Stephanie have already raised more than £3,000 for the event. Trevor also helped secure the DSA as ‘charity of the year’ for the company he works for. So far, himself and his colleagues at industrial services company KAEFER have raised more than £25,000 this year.
‘We joined the DSA after Paighton was born. It was very overwhelming at first but the charity’s information is very helpful and promotes awareness and inclusivity. It’s been and still is an emotional ride with Paighton but I always say she’s made us better people.’
Bristol mother Annabel Tall will be cheered on by her two sons Samuel and Freddie. Freddie 22, has Down’s syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder and is also deaf.
‘The charity helped us win a tribunal to get Freddie support in school when he was five, which set the path for his very successful life so far. It also helped us get his bone anchored head aids so that he could hear. People need a voice. The Down’s Syndrome Association is our voice.’
It’s the first large, in-person fundraising event the DSA has put on in almost two years due to the coronavirus pandemic.
We just want to say a huge thank you to all of our dedicated fundraisers for standing by us and waiting for this event to finally happen. We are so grateful to everyone for their support and of course, for volunteering to jump out of a plane to raise money for us.
Many of our fundraising streams dried up almost overnight thanks to the pandemic, but it’s with the creativity, dedication and tenacity of many of our supporters that we have managed to come up with new and different ways to raise funds. But, to be actually able to meet people in person this weekend and get a sense of the excitement on the day will be amazing. We can’t wait to see everyone.
The skydive event is taking place at Go Skydive in Salisbury, with people jumping from 8am until 2pm. There will be games and food so that families can enjoy and attend the day in celebration of the Down’s Syndrome Association’s 50th anniversary.
Trevor can be sponsored here.
A big thank you to everyone who is taking part!
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