A fundraising team is set to whizz down England's "longest and fastest" 700-metre zipline in aid of two Havering charities.
The fundraiser will take place on June 12 at Hangloose Adventure, in Bluewater, Kent, where the charity members could be the first to go on the newly-built zipline.
Take a Knife Save a Life (TAKSAL), a volunteer-run charity which aims to keep Havering’s streets safe from knife crime, and Havering Mind, a charity that focuses on helping those experiencing mental health, will split all the money raised through the fundraiser.
Since 2019, TAKSAL has collected “over 2,500 knives via its knife amnesty home collection” and “over 250 knives and weapons” through its regular street patrols and weapons sweeps.
TAKSAL events and fundraising coordinator, Coryn Maile, 40, said the team aims to raise “as much as possible” to help the charities, which both rely on public donations.
She said: "We’re hoping that this will raise our profile and get more people in the community to know what we’re doing.
“The partnership with Havering mind is great - we’re both local charities that are self-funded - and we’d like to bring the community together further by working with other local charities in the future.”
Joining Coryn for the zipline challenge will be TAKSAL's general manager Robert Dean, and on behalf of Havering Mind, Charlotte Lennon-Reeve and Ricky Lennon-Reeve from entertainment company Ricknroll Mascots.
Havering Mind events, fundraising and training coordinator, Ciaran White, said: “Havering Mind is delighted to be represented in this fundraising activity by Charlotte and Ricky. Charlotte and Coryn in particular are terrified of heights so it should be an ‘interesting’ challenge for them to take on!
“We have seen an increase in demand for our services over the past year due to the effects that the Covid crisis has had on people's mental health.
"Apart from the obvious benefits of raising money for us that these kinds of challenges can have, the effect of actually being able to do a physical and stimulating challenge such as this and confronting one's fears can have a great positive impact on a person's wellbeing.”
Coryn hopes to livestream the event at https://fb.me/e/dnl91jUW6
Follow TAKSAL on Facebook and donate to the fundraiser at https://www.sponsorme.co.uk
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here