Zoe takes to the skies for hospice challenge!
The sky’s the limit says the fundraising website for this year’s Bolton Hospice £50 challenge – and that’s exactly what daredevil Zoe Jackson is hoping to achieve.
Zoe is part of a team from Bolton Arena Sports Village taking part in the annual hospice fundraiser and will bring our activities to a spectacular close with a skydive in June.
It’s the second year our senior receptionist Zoe and colleagues here at the arena have signed up for the challenge, whereby teams from local businesses are each given £50 and challenged to turn it into as much as possible with the advice, ‘if it’s legal it’s fine’; and we are hoping to better the £4,264 we raised in 2024.
The £50 starter fund is donated by event sponsors, Westhoughton-based Stateside Foods, and each team is given three months to raise as much money as they can. This year’s cash handover is taking place at the Queens Park Street hospice in March and the challenge runs from 1 April to 30 June.
Weather permitting, Zoe will be taking to the skies with other hospice fundraisers on Saturday, June 28, from the Black Knights Skydiving Centre at Cockerham, south of Lancaster, supported by colleagues who plan to make the trip to witness her adventure.
“When we decided to support the £50 challenge again, I said I’d do a skydive, so I am,” says Zoe. “It’s something I’ve always been interested in doing, but it’s not something you get the chance to do that often. I wanted to do something different to last year and challenge myself, so this is it.”
The team’s fundraising drive is spearheaded by members of our Employee Engagement Group (EEG), that includes Zoe, Stuart Kay, our Head of Sport and Communities, Kerry Macdonald, Senior Customer Service Manager, and Ceri Gillingham, Catering Manager. They are now planning what other activities to stage for the 2025 challenge.
Last year’s events included a 10k run, bake sales, book sales, raffles, and more. One of the key contributors was the arena’s own Colour Run event, where all profits were donated towards the team’s total – the second highest in the challenge.
Stuart says: “The dedication of the arena’s staff, combined with the generosity of event participants and our customers, helped the team achieve their outstanding fundraising total last year.
“We’re committed to continuing our support for Bolton Hospice and its mission to support local people living with life-limiting illnesses, but this year we’re aiming for the top spot!”
The arena team is one of 10 already signed up for the 2025 challenge. They’ll be joined by teams from Stateside Foods, Bolton Leisure, Bolton Gin Company, Booths Industries, Northern Monkey Ltd, Crystal Cremations, Nuffield Health, Bolton College and Harrisons Estate Agents.
Firms wishing to sign up for the challenge should get in touch with the hospice fundraising team at: fundraising@boltonhospice.org, or call 01204 663 065, or individuals can sign up just for the skydive here:
https://www.boltonhospice.org.uk/form/skydive
Anyone interested in sponsoring Zoe should visit her JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/page/zoe-jackson-skydive?utm_medium=FR&utm_source=CL
