5th October 2021
Challengers isn’t just a charity, it’s a community. Our supporters come from many different avenues – some have a personal connection, while others just live nearby to one of our schemes. But no matter how they find us, they always want to help in any way that they can.
One example of this is 11-year-old Isla and her 14-year-old cousin Orla, who have recently completed an amazing fundraising challenge for Challengers.
Isla’s younger brother Ayrton started at our Guildford Pre-school in January, after being diagnosed in May 2020 with Kleefstra Syndrome – a very rare chromosome disorder which causes developmental delay and means he needs a lot of extra help and care.
Ayrton’s family have told us how happy he’s been since coming to Challengers, so much so, that it inspired Isla and Orla to help raise money specifically to help build a brand-new inclusive playground at the Guildford centre.
The pair bravely set themselves the challenge of completing a mini triathlon on Saturday the 25th September, which included each of them jogging five times around a large green of 4,000 meters, cycling five laps around the green (plus the ride home!), and twenty laps of swimming around a 15ft pool. Not only that, they decided that they were going to do all of this with no breaks in-between!
Isla and Orla did incredibly well and finished their mini triathlon successfully. They hoped to raise £1,000, which is already a fantastic amount, but thanks to their excellent fundraising skills they managed to exceed their target and raise an astonishing £3,508!
Isla’s mum Laura said: “A very, very big well done to the girls for completing what was an extremely tiring challenge and raising such an amazing amount! The incredible support shown in the number of donations which flowed in really inspired them, and knowing how much Ayrton and so many other children will love the new playground equipment kept them going through some difficult training sessions! It has been a lovely opportunity as a family & extended family, to be able to support Challengers in this way.”
Everyone at Challengers would like to say a massive thank you to Isla and Orla for completing the incredible challenge they set themselves, raising a fantastic amount of money along the way! Also a big shout out to everyone who donated to support the girls on their journey.
If you’d like support Isla & Orla with their fundraising, there’s still time to donate on their Just Giving page.