82-year-old Marjorie jumps from 13,000 ft for hospital charity

FORMER teacher and 82-year-old local resident Marjorie Whitear, leapt 13,000ft from a plane this month to show her appreciation for the NHS.  

Majorie was one of 15 brave fundraisers that jumped out of a plane on 4th July for The Forever Friends Appeal – the official NHS charity for the Royal United Hospitals Bath (RUH Bath).  Marjorie and the team have so far raised over £14,000. 

Marjorie said, “I have wanted to do a skydive for a long time and I am delighted that this opportunity has arisen. I used to fly a golden eagle called Samson in Devon and the thought of being able to do, for a little while, what he could do all the time was very tempting.   

“I wanted to support the RUH because we all depend on it. I received treatment at the hospital a few years ago and the staff made everything easy, simple and painless – it was fantastic. 

“We have learnt to appreciate our NHS more over the last year because of the Covid crisis. We have seen what the staff are doing and now I think everyone is more appreciative and wants to contribute towards the RUH.” 

The Forever Friends Appeal’s events and community coordinator, Laura Cherry added, “I would like to say a huge thank you to all our skydive participants. We cannot thank you all enough for taking on this huge challenge to support the hospital.  

“Wonderful supporters and donors like Marjorie allow us to fund projects that make a real difference to the lives of hundreds of thousands of patients cared for by the RUH Bath.  

“It was a brilliant day and the whole team successfully jumped. After a year of virtual events as a result of Covid-19, it was great to see our fundraisers in person at an event for the first time in a while. Thank you all so much.” 

If you’re interested in future skydiving opportunities or fundraising for the RUH Bath in other ways, please get in touch with the team on ruh-tr.fundraising@nhs.net