Microlight mission raises more than £3,650 for St Catherine’s Hospice!

Two daring flight enthusiasts put their endurance and flying skills to the test on a 2,200-mile journey by microlight around the British Isles which raised an incredible £3,653 for St Catherine’s Hospice.

Tim Burrow and Neil King nick-named their expedition ‘Sea to the Left’ – since as long as they kept the ocean on that side, they were travelling in the right direction.

They completed the epic challenge over nine days in June – up in the air for seven, and grounded for two by bad weather.

The journey took them from St Michael’s airfield in Garstang up to Scotland, down to Cornwall and everywhere in-between, each of them flying in their own microlight and setting up camp each night.

Tim used the challenge to raise money for St Catherine’s Hospice – where his wife Katharine works at The Woodside lymphoedema clinic – while Neil was flying in aid of The Christie cancer hospital, where his daughter Sharon was looked after before she sadly died in 2005.

In total they raised an amazing £7,306.70, which has been split equally between the two charities.

Tim, a builder from Preston, dedicated the adventure to Mike Rushworth, a friend who first got him into flying 11 years ago, who tragically died in a road accident recently.

Tim said: “Without Mike, there wouldn’t have been any of this – it was him who got me excited about flying all those years ago and inspired me to continue with this fantastic hobby.

“The sense of achievement when we finished the trip was huge – there were some tough times when we really had to dig in and push on, when you’re flying up to 400 miles in one day there’s bound to be. But it was an amazing experience and when it was all over I must admit we were left feeling a bit lost. It’s made us start thinking about our next trip – maybe this time we could venture to Europe!”

Neil added: “The trip was absolutely magic from start to finish.

“I really enjoyed it and it felt so good to complete what we set out to do. We’re obviously delighted to have raised such a great amount of money for two wonderful charities.”

They both thanked everyone who had donated so generously, including through talks they have given to local groups about the adventure once they returned home.

Tim added: “Re-living the experience by sharing it with others, showing the photos and videos from the trip, has been a really nice thing to do and has even helped bring in more funds.

“We’re so grateful to everyone for their donations, which we know will be put to such good use by St Catherine’s and The Christie.”

Norman Cutler, senior fundraiser at St Catherine’s Hospice, thanked Tim and Neil for organising such an innovative fundraiser for charity.

He said: “This is certainly one of the more unusual challenges to have taken place in aid of St Catherine’s during our special 30th anniversary year!

“We’re so impressed with what Tim and Neil have achieved and would like to say a huge thank you to them and everyone who has supported them. The funds raised will fund our specialised care for local people facing conditions like cancer, motor neurone disease and heart failure – helping them to enjoy quality of life, and to have comfort and dignity in death.”

Click here if you’d still like to donate to their challenge.

Check out the gallery and video clips below from their adventures!

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