A CO-FOUNDER of Oswestry Cat Rescue took her dedication to the charity to new heights recently - when she completed a fundraising wingwalk.
Elizabeth Hindmarch put her fear of flying to one side for the extreme challenge in the hope of raising lots of donations for the charity.
The rescue centre, run out of the homes of Elizabeth and Keri Roberts, is quickly approaching its one-year anniversary, and the duo said they have been overwhelmed with all the cats they have had to take in.
To help with the situation, Elizabeth took on the challenge to raise money for a new pen for the animals.
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Elizabeth, who is the director of Oswestry-based electronics manufacturer, I S Fusion Limited, said: “It’s quite an extreme way to raise money but it seems to do the job.
“I am terrified of flying and heights – and I think people like to see others push themselves.
“It pushed me out of my comfort zone.”
Elizabeth set up a JustGiving page ahead of the wing-walk, which took place on Saturday, October 7, in Cirencester, and is overwhelmed by the amount of donations.
She added: “It was terrifying, I thought I was going to bail – but once I got up, I quite enjoyed it, and it was worth it.
“The money is still coming in and we’ve already raised over £1,200 for the new pen.”
To prepare for the challenge Elizabeth tried watching YouTube videos which only seemed to have made it worse for her fear.
“I was a nervous wreck – very, very anxious,” she continued, “I watched a couple of videos on YouTube but that terrified me even more.”
After the safety briefing, she was the last to go in her group, but that only made her competitive side show even more.
She added: “It was really hard to see them go up before me, but I am quite competitive, and I knew I had to keep my arms out like everyone else – if you hold on to your seat your pilot thinks you’re not enjoying it and he’ll give you an easy ride.
“I was in the air for 13 minutes, going 100mph, so it was quite hard to breathe, but I am happy I did it.”
Oswestry Cat Rescue is a non-profit charity rescue aims to help rehabilitate and rehome feral, stray and abandoned cats and kittens.
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