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Heroic Supporters Step Over The Edge For St Catherine's Hospice

Superhero abseilers came out in force to support St Catherine's Hospice on Friday and Saturday (5th and 6th April)

More than 100 brave supporters took on an adrenaline pumping, 100ft abseil down the outside of the Sandman Signature hotel in Crawley, including in the local hospice's first ever night time abseil.

On Friday, local businesses swapped their desks for defying gravity and their suits for Superhero costumes, as they tackled the abseil. Amongst them was Laura Nesbitt and Gail Botting from Irwin Mitchell Solicitors in Crawley. They said: "The abseil was a big challenge for the 9 of us taking part, but we donned our costumes with pride and thoroughly enjoyed it! St Catherine's is very close to our hearts at Irwin Mitchell as a colleague of ours was in their care last year. The support the hospice gave to them and their family was outstanding. We're looking forward to raising as much as we can for St Catherine's and have raised more than £2,000 for the abseil. We know how these funds will help others so we're glad to do it."

Two of St Catherine's Trustees, Lisa Compton and Alison Crombie, also took on the challenge. Lisa said, "As Trustees, Alison and I are always looking for new ways we can support St Catherine's and raise awareness of the amazing work the hospice does in our community. The abseil was the perfect chance for us to do this whilst challenging ourselves too. After all, it's not everyday you successfully abseil down a building! We're thrilled that we've raised more than £500 and would like to thank everyone who has supported us. It definitely made that initial going over the edge easier!"

Many abseilers also took on the challenge in memory of someone they love. Jamie Russell descended alongside his Dad, Phil, and brother Harry in memory of their Mum and Phil's wife, Lee. After completing his abseil Jamie said, "Wow! I can't believe I've just done that! From a young age I've been absolutely petrified of heights. Even the thought of climbing a ladder terrifies me so when I found out that Dad had put me forward for St Catherine's abseil I wasn't sure how I'd get through it. But I embraced it, and would go as far to say that I even enjoyed it! I took on the challenge to thank St Catherine's for the vital support and care they gave my Mum, and our whole family, during an incredibly tough time. I also wanted to raise money so in the future other families can receive the same outstanding care from the St Catherine's team that we did. I know Mum would be really proud of me for facing my fear for such a great cause."

Louise Wise, Events Fundraiser at St Catherine's said: "It was fantastic to see so many supporters step up and over the edge to support us on Friday and Saturday. At the moment, we can only care for one in three local people who need us but the bravery of our abseilers will help us get closer to reaching more people in our community so that in the future nobody has to face death and loss alone. I'd like to thank everyone who took part, our on the day volunteers, and the Sandman Signature Hotel for hosting us."

To find out more about how you can support St Catherine's in future challenges, please

call the Events Team on 01293 447355, email: events@stch.org.uk or visit: www.stch.org.uk

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