A DEDICATED team including Gulliver’s World staff from Warrington is set to take on Snowdon for a great cause.
To mark Wear Yellow for Cystic Fibrosis Day on June 16, the Gulliver’s team will climb Snowdon, the highest point in the British Isles outside the Scottish Highlands.
The team is taking on the challenge to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, a charity that supports people with cystic fibrosis to live without limits. Cystic fibrosis is a condition affecting more than 10,800 people in the UK that causes sticky mucus to build up in the lungs and digestive system.
The team of 13 currently includes Sarah Downes, Darren Killilea and Jake Berry from the Warrington theme park resort, and Hannah Marsden, from Gulliver’s Kingdom in Matlock Bath.
The aim is to encourage other walkers to join and “turn the top of Snowdon yellow,” while raising as much money as possible for the trust.
The cause is especially close to the heart of team captain Sarah. Her and partner Neil, from Newton-le-Willows, are parents to Jamie, 2, who was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at four weeks old.
While Jamie’s young life has already included a lot of medication and hospital stays, a new drug is available this autumn which should dramatically improve his quality of life.
Sarah, the guest experience lead for Gulliver’s World, said: “With no family history of cystic fibrosis, Jamie’s diagnosis was a complete shock. Myself and Neil had never even heard of the condition and now it is a huge part of our lives.
“Jamie is currently on 24 medications or treatments a day, he has been admitted to hospital multiple times, he’s had a bronchoscopy and he has had IVs twice for two weeks at a time.
“Receiving Jamie’s diagnosis has massively impacted us as a family. Parents hate seeing their child poorly, but we have to go through that a lot. Due to cystic fibrosis being such a complex condition, it affects most of the body. Raising money helps fund more research into new drugs and therapies to improve the lives of people living with cystic fibrosis.
“I’ve done a fundraiser every year since Jamie’s diagnosis. The first year I ran 100km over five weeks, the second year I took part in the cystic fibrosis Mama Challenge and helped raised £43,000 for the charity. This year I wanted to get as many people I know as possible involved so wanted a challenge that was doable but also hard – I believe Snowdon is that.
“I’d like to say a massive thanks to everyone getting involved and to Gulliver’s, who have been so understanding of my situation and always supported me.”
For more information and to make a donation to the team, visit: https://cysticfibrosistrust.enthuse.com/pf/snowdon-climb-for-cf
