A postman is taking on two hiking challenges to raise money for the blood cancer charity that saved his one-year-old sister-in-law.
Nick Winterton, a postman at March Delivery Office, will be doing two 100km hikes in aid of the Anthony Nolan charity, which helped to find a bone marrow donor for his sister-in-law Kristine Gettings, who at the time was less than a year old.
Organised by outdoor events organisation Action Challenge, Nick’s first trek will be from London to Brighton on May 25 and 26, followed by The Cotswold Way Challenge, on June 22 and 23.
“She owes her life to Anthony Nolan and a bone marrow donor from Tasmania - others are not so lucky,” he said.
For some 50 years, the charity has made life-saving connections between those with blood cancers and stem cell donors, like Kristine’s.
He added: “The only way to repay Anthony Nolan for her second chance in life is to raise some money, promote awareness and get as many people as possible to sign up to the stem cell register.
“With a simple swab kit, you could also be a potential match for someone, you may never be needed, or your stem cells and yours alone could save a life.”
A target time of 24-33 hours has been set for participants to complete each challenge, with the only stops being taken for comfort, refreshments and medical treatment.
These events will be the postman’s 14th and 15th challenges and since 2010, he has raised £18,000 for different charities.
“The challenges are, again, two of the hardest in the UK,” Nick said.
“London to Brighton is a new one for me and the Cotswold Way is one I did way back in 2017, but is a completely different route now.
“Hopefully everything will go okay but with so many factors involved and very little recovery time between the two, you can never get overconfident, even after all these years.
“The minute you get complacent you will fail and I haven’t failed any yet, hopefully I will keep it that way.
“They are called ultra challenges for a reason but I intend to enjoy every second.”
Donations can be made by visiting his Just Giving page, or by asking any postman in the PE15 area for a sponsorship form to be delivered to your door.
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