Skydive to support poorly children

A pair of pals will take to the sky to raise money to support poorly children.

Danielle Gillespie, 35, and Tony Haddon, 62, will jump out of a plane at 12,000 feet on Saturday for a skydive in aid of East Kent Hospitals Charity.

The best friends, who work at JD Pipes in Ashford, donate toys to the children’s ward at William Harvey Hospital in Ashford each Christmas with their colleagues, and were inspired to do more to help.

Danielle said: “You can’t help be inspired when you visit the hospital and see the children, who are so full of joy at such a difficult time in their young lives.

“The charity is very close to our hearts and we hope to raise as much as possible to help these inspirational children and spread some smiles.

“Tony and I have wanted to do a skydive for a while, and so we decided to combine it with raising money at the same time.”

The Christmas toy donations are funded by customers who donate throughout the year, and the pair have a Just Giving page for their skydive. You can donate online at: https://www.justgiving.com/page/danielle-tony290624

Dee Neligan, head of East Kent Hospitals Charity, said: “JDP Ashford have been incredibly supportive of Padua Ward for the past three years, and donated thousands of pounds worth of toys and games at Christmas. 

“We’re delighted Danielle and Tony are now taking on this additional challenge, which will help bring in extra money to spend on items to make being in hospital more bearable for some of our youngest patients.

“We are very grateful for their continued support, and wish them all the best for Saturday’s skydive.”

If you fancy taking on a challenge for our charity, have a look at their website: https://www.ekhcharity.org.uk/events/

You could try skydiving, bungee jumping, wing walking or choose from a range of running events, from a fun 3k Santa run to the Paris marathon.