Stirley Swimathon!
Tuesday 20th December 2011
The Stirley Swimmers
Local residents, Damian Haigh, Andrew Whitwam and Robert Gothard have decided to take the plunge and will be swimming to raise money for Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s Stirley Community Farm appeal on January 14th 2012.
"The Stirley Community Farm project gripped me from day one..." Damian Haigh
Started in March 2011, Stirley Community Farm has had a fantastic first year thanks to the hard of work of many dedicated volunteers, with hundreds of people coming along celebrate its successes at the inaugural Open Day in September. Damian Haigh said:
“The Stirley Community Farm project gripped me from day one, living so close to it and being surrounded by some of the 250 acres of open fields with Castle Hill dominating from above. The opportunity to protect the land around such an iconic local landmark for future generations including my own two young boys and to learn how to grow your own sustainable food was too good an opportunity to miss.”
Yorkshire Wildlife Trust has had some great funding successes for Stirley Community Farm, including receiving over £300,000 from the Veolia Cre8 Challenge Fund to take forward the plans for Stirley. However, in order to successfully restore the old stone barn and turn it into a centre for local food and sustainable farming education, as well as a fantastic meeting space for events and workshops, further funding is needed. Yorkshire Wildlife Trust launched its Stirley Community Appeal in November, with the aim of raising £30,000 by the end of January.
Damian, Andrew and Robert are taking on their challenge of swimming 500 lengths of their local pool in 90 minutes, with the aim of raising £500 to go towards this appeal. Damian, a regular volunteer at Stirley Community Farm, explains why he decided to take up this challenge:
"Having been involved as a volunteer at the farm I wanted to help raise some money for their appeal. I thought they would need the help, as £30,000 is a lot of money to raise in three months so as a keen swimmer I came up with the idea of Sponsored Swim. When my best two mates heard what I was doing they agreed to join me in the Swimathon. We hope to swim a combined total of 500 lengths (25mtr pool) in 90 minutes and to raise £500."
You can support Damian, Andrew and Robert by visiting www.justgiving.com/Stirley-Swimathon.
Tagged with: Fundraiser, Fundraising, Stirley, Stirley Community Farm Appeal, Volunteer, Volunteering