Having made it through my cold water swim challenge of 10 swims into winter, I am taking on a new swim challenge to raise funds to help enable the work of Alongside You to continue next year through a season of transition.
I am taking on the challenge of swimming 2.5km, which will be by far my longest swim, in the River Cam, having never swum in a river before. The Event is Cambridge Slow Swim and Picnic on the 8th July 2023 - in the 'relaxed I know where the cake is hidden wave' two, for steady pace swimmers. I have a team joining me: Izzy (my brother's Fiancé) for the 2.5km, while my Mum and daughter Anna (aged 11yrs) will join us for the 1.2k Pooh sticks distance, with other family supporting us from the Riverbank.
I have started training and swimming twice a week in my local Lido and can swim 1km comfortably, but am starting to build up the distance and need to motivate myself to get back in the cold water at West Reservoir. The picture above is taken in the Lake District in February - brrr! Hoping a river in July will be significantly warmer.
I am raising funds for Alongside You, the charity I set up in East London, supporting children and families living with HIV. I am moving on from my role as Service Director 2 days a week, and will be joining the Trustee Board and supporting on outings as a volunteer. I am handing over the coordination of the work to my colleague Sharmaine, and working hard to put as much in place to enable the work to continue smoothly over the next year. I am hoping that this fundraising challenge, will be a significant part of this helping to bring in a good chunk of funds to support the next season of the charity and enable continuity of service provision for our precious children and families. Thank you for giving generously.
