Volunteers jump for cash for cats
24 October 2017
Update! 31.10.17. Our girls done good! Along with dozens of others raising money for charity. In fact, Jen (3rd from right in the group pic) still sounds a bit ‘high’ in her reporting of the Bangor 'longest jump in Europe' event on Saturday.
“It was awesome! No one threw up or had a heart attack, so that counts as a result.
“The big one (we had a practice run on a smaller one first) was so spectacular; we were taken up to the top of the mountain on the back of a truck and it seemed the journey would never end. We wound ever upwards and ever round and round, and I kept thinking that it was a spectacularly bad idea, but it was too late to back out. I just kept reminding myself that some poor cat somewhere would benefit if I was able to do it and that kept me going.
"The guys who guided us were all very professional and reassuring and made the difference between calm and mass hysteria (even though they all looked about 14 years old – bit like how police officers look these days!) I’d do it again tomorrow. The glide itself was utterly breathtaking, in all senses of the word, and over all too quickly. The view was sensational, gliding over a slate mountain and a beautiful aquamarine lake, and coming in to land over the area next to the reception building, so onlookers had a great view of us lot looking very smug for having the guts to do it in the first place.”
And Shaki (4th from right) adds: “Jen seems to have covered all bases – and she may get that chance she so dearly wants to do it again - there are plans afoot to zip across again next year.”
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Valiant volunteers with the North Birmingham branch of Cats Protection will be making the ‘fastest and longest jump in Europe’ at the end of October – to raise funds for felines in their care. Long-serving volunteers Shaki McFarland and Jenny Reynolds have put their names down to ‘jump for cats’ at the fund-raising event taking place in Bethesda, Bangor on Saturday the 28th October.
To sponsor the daredevil pair, go to Shaki and Jen's sponsorship page
And it won’t be the first time they’ve diced with danger – in 2015 they both abseiled down the cliffs of the Avon Gorge to raise money for moggies and – thankfully – returned hale and hearty to tell the tale and carry on in their vital cat-care roles.
‘Zip World Velocity’ is the fastest zip line in the world and the longest in Europe and Shaki and Jenny are ‘a bit nervous but very excited’.
Says Shaki, who is welfare officer with the North Birmingham branch: “We will be taking in the stunning views from the Big Top of Velocity, out towards Anglesey with views of the Isle of Man too if it's a clear day. We’ll be with dozens, maybe hundreds, of other volunteers from all over the country – descending down the Big Zipper over the quarry lake – and we're told we'll be reaching speeds in excess of 100mph! It really will be the giddy height of my volunteering career - so far.”
Shaki and Jenny will be wearing yellow bandanas while they ‘zip through the air’ as the Cats Protection logo is yellow and blue. Says Jenny: “Maybe the blue will be added by – hopefully – clear blue skies above us! We are hoping for good weather so we can do the cats and our fellow volunteers proud. It certainly is a great challenge - and the more we can raise in sponsorship for needy cats, the better. With Halloween coming up, lets hope we don't get spooked!"
To sponsor the pair, visit https://zipworldcats.everydayhero.com/uk/shaki
The URL for the event listing is https://www.cats.org.uk/zipsandabseils
*** North Birmingham Cats Protection is currently looking for more volunteers. Branch co-ordinator Denise Atkins says: “Just now, we need a homing officer, indoor fosterers, and trap/neuter/return volunteers. And we’d love to hear from anyone – or two to share – the volunteer recruitment role”.
*To contact CP about volunteering, call the helpline – 0345 2601503.