A decade of fundraising! Rachel Clark raises £62,500 for local charity

CHARITY fundraiser extraordinaire, Rachel Clark, has completed a decade of fundraising for Frome charity We Hear You (WHY), raising a massive £62,500.

Along the way she has broken two Guinness World Records and seen over 7,000 people join in with her various fundraising events. She also won an ITV Pride of Britain nomination, was winner of the Institute of Fundraising’s Volunteer of the Year award 2020 and was Frome Times’ Person of the Year in 2018.

The money raised has funded the equivalent of 1,400 counselling sessions for someone impacted by cancer or a life-threatening condition. 

“Last year (2021) to mark 10 years of fundraising, I did a mini challenge every month, once again involving the community,” Rachel told Frome Times. “The mile a day in December was the 12th and final challenge of 2021. 

“During the year I revisited some of our challenges we had done before like the Cobble Wobble and I also devised some new ones. I chose the mile a day as my ‘365 for WHY’ mile a day for a year in 2019 was the most memorable challenge to date, so I thought I’d end the year with a month of that.

“I’m so proud of everything Team Clark has achieved in the last ten years. My mum has been the inspiration for all of it, from day one. Soon after mum died, my nan passed away too. I was broken and my mental health was in ruins, but counselling really helped, and I decided I wanted to give something back.  

“Later that year I started fundraising. I got hooked. It gave me a reason to function, properly. The most common question I get asked after every interview, after every event is, why do I fundraise? What keeps me going? They do. They may be gone. But they can live on through what we achieve, what we have done as a collective.  

“Many of you have been with me since the beginning, some of you have joined us along the way – and so far, a phenomenal 7,156 people have taken part in Team Clark events. None of our challenges and achievements would have been possible without my family, friends and the army of support I’ve had around me, so thank you so much. Here’s to the next decade!” 

WHY’s CEO Melissa Hillier said, “We’re so grateful to Rachel and the whole of the ever-growing Team Clark for everything they’ve achieved for WHY. Rachel has an extraordinary gift for bringing people together, and never seems to run out of ideas or energy, even after 30+ hours awake while breaking a world record!  

“As well as raising a fantastic amount of money, Rachel and her team have raised the profile of We Hear You and generated so much goodwill, increasing our visibility so that the people who need us know we are here. Many thanks Rachel, we can’t wait to hear what’s next!” 

Rachel’s fundraising decade included completing The Cobble Wobble; The Bath Half; Frome to Land’s End cycle non stop in 21hrs; The Coach pull; The Fire truck pull; The Ladder Challenge; The World Record Row; A mile a day for a year; The 365 reunion mile; The Skittles world record; The 10 years challenge.

Follow We Hear You on Facebook for details of Rachel’s 2022 fundraising. To find out more about WHY’s services for children and adults affected directly or indirectly by a life-threatening condition such as cancer, call 01373 455255. email info@wehearyou.org.uk or visit wehearyou.org.uk