A little about Paul and why he wants to take on this challenge...
In 2017 Paul had made the difficult decision of
bringing an end to his amazing fundraising due to health reasons.
However, a phone call on the 25th May 2017 left
Paul devastated, the news of an amazing lady that he had become good friends
with had lost her battle against breast cancer and had passed away in QA
Hospital Portsmouth. Marjorie Anne Walker was a VERY SPECIAL human being (in
Paul’s words). Always thinking of others, Marjorie Anne setup Portsmouth Breast
Friend (PBF), a support group for those who were undergoing treatment and
recovering from breast cancer, including men, yes men can have breast cancer.
Marjorie made a huge difference to many and along with her ladies at PBF they
give support to those who need it, they also work in association with Haven
Breast Cancer Charity. As a result of Majorie Anne’s passing Paul has decided
to do one more challenge to celebrate his 60th birthday at the end of the year,
Paul will also be supporting The Oakley Caravan Foundation with this final physical
challenge.
The Oakley Waterman Caravan foundation was set
up by Dave and Loraine Waterman as a promise to their son Oakley who passed
away after a lengthy battle with Leukaemia at the age of 6, the foundation
provide caravan holidays for terminally ill children and their families.
So what will the challenge be? Paul has taken on
challenges on land and in the air so being a Royal Navy Veteran it seems only
to right to take on a challenge on the water, Paul will row himself across the
channel (Dover to Calais) and the challenge will be called ‘Challenge the
Channel’.
Not so big of a challenge you may think, it is when you consider that Paul has a head injury leaving him with migraine pressure in his head 24/7, spinal injury, chest, neck, shoulders, hip injuries, Paul also battles with depression and PTSD every single day of his life.
Training sessions so far have included:
Paul's first 40 mins training session on monday 12th March instructed by Peter Clarke (Captain of Southsea Rowing Club)
Friday 16th March Paul had a great 40 mins training session despite having had food poisoning the day before, as you can see he has improved his distance and times. Paul also ordered a heart monitor which arrived today.
Tues 20th march training was difficult, Paul was set the challenge of keeping his heart rate down to 142bpm still and he felt like he wasn’t working hard enough.
Paul needs your help, he has to find a sponsor to cover the cost of the support and communications boats for the challenge which is £2,000 plus a further £1,000 in other costs....any help will be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for reading Paul's updates, I will keep you updated with lots more to come... meanwhile check out the social media posts here at Instagram & Facebook
