Daring fundraisers from Frome abseiled from the north-west tower of Wells Cathedral to raise funds for local charity SOS Africa recently.
The charity was founded by Frome residents in 2003 to fund the education and care of South African township children. Each year the charity staff plan innovative fundraising events to raise funds for the SOS Africa children.
The event began on Friday 27th September with the Bishop of Bath and Wells and the Dean of Wells Cathedral the first to take on the challenge. Once they climbed the 182 steps to the top of the tower and abseiled from the top of the scaffolding platform with a view of Wells and the Somerset Levels before them, they were cheered by gathering crowds which grew in number as they touched the ground and completed their challenge.
They were followed by brave Frome Post Office staff members Steve Cleaver, Barry Ellis, Theo Stevens, Sue Pleasants and Gemma Thorne as well as Elmer, Lucy and Alex from Frome Wholefoods.
SOS Africa charity founder and Frome resident, Matt Crowcombe, completed the abseil dressed in a chicken costume, after his partner’s favourite childhood book “Chicken Licken”:
He said, “Whilst escorting our abseilers to the top of the tower, I had the pleasure of chatting with them and hearing their individual stories. For some, this experience had been near the top of their bucket list, for others it represented one of the toughest challenges they had ever faced. It was impossible not to be inspired by their bravery and determination to make a life-changing difference to the lives of so many children!
“Congratulations to all 190 fundraisers who completed the abseil last weekend and a big thank you to the thousands of friends and family who have sponsored them!”
By the time the final abseiler had touched down at the base of the tower, with one weekend still to go, SOS Africa’s previous fundraising record had been smashed. The event total now stands at an incredible £45,000 and counting… This will fund comprehensive reading programmes for over 300 disadvantaged children in South Africa.
For more information about the event, please visit: www. sosafrica.com/wellscathedralabseil, email info@sosafrica.com or drop into the SOS Africa charity shop on Shepton Mallet High Street.
Above Barry Ellis (Postman from the Keyford area)
