Support the mental and physical wellbeing of young people and their families in Gloucestershire

Volunteer goes to Extraordinary Lengths to Raise Money for YG.

Belinda Wilson, director of www.GlosJobs.co.uk and www.glos.info set about fundraising for Young Gloucestershire after meeting with Tracy Clark our CEO, and feeling so impressed with what the charity does with young people and our strapline “Inspiring Young People.”

Belinda decided to set her own inspirational challenge, swimming the distance of Cheltenham to Heathrow followed by a trek across the desert to Petra, Jordan. Belinda named her challenge the Bizarre Biathlon.

It took Belinda nearly four months to swim the 155km distance, equivalent to 6,200 lengths of the pool at Cheltenham Ladies’ College. Not an easy feat by any means, especially as Belinda was struck down with Covid during this time. Undeterred Belinda said she loved swimming and this part of the challenge only helped prepare her fitness ready for Petra.

Having swum to Heathrow, the next part of the Bizarre Biathlon was to complete a five day trek in Jordan, walking 77km through the desert to the ancient city of Petra; Belinda tells us about this impressive experience;

“It was an utterly amazing! The hardest thing I have ever done but also one of the best. I kept thinking about “Inspiring Young People” which I had on the back of my T-shirt. The main problem was that I had injured my calf muscle before going, so I walked the whole way with it strapped and on painkillers.

“The most amazing day was when we walked 38,000+ paces up the edge of a ridge, with a total elevation of 115 storeys. It was all in the 28-30 degree heat and we were carrying at least 4 litres of water with us. At the top, Zuzu the donkey came into her own as she had been carrying the kettle on the whole trek. The guide would light a fire and make us dark, sweet tea. Just what we needed to keep us going the rest of the way. Each night we camped in a different location along the way.

“The day we walked into Petra was fabulous. It is one of the seven wonders of the world and it is easy to understand how it got that title. I am so pleased to have raised over £2,500 (including GiftAid) for Young Gloucestershire and I hope to have inspired a few people along the way. Thank you to everyone who has donated, some of whom are anonymous, so I haven’t been able to say thank you in person.”

YG are incredibly grateful to Belinda for dedicating this impressive feat to the young people of Gloucestershire and for the money that she raised to help inspiring young people. If you would like to donate to Belinda’s JustGiving page click below.
Donate
volunteer raising money by trekking across Petra

Take on Your Own Challenge

If Belinda’s story has inspired you then why not join us on one of our upcoming challenge events where you can run, walk or trek as we take on feats like the Welsh Three Peaks or may be you could be tempted by a once in a life time challenge like Belinda. Click below to find out more
YG Challenge Events Once in Lifetime

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