Press release – 14 August
A grandmother from Aberdeen has climbed one of the Bennachie hill range peaks in an impressive fundraiser for the international disaster relief charity ShelterBox.
ShelterBox specialises in emergency shelter, supporting people around the world who have lost their homes after disaster or conflict. Keen to raise vital funds to support people uprooted from their homes, Dorothy Lamb, 79, was determined to climb Mither Tap with a sponsored hike alongside her family.
Dorothy says: “As we drive from the south into the village where we live, we get a fantastic view of Bennachie and when our grandsons were little, I always used to say to them that I’d take them up there one day. It became a family joke.”
Dorothy wanted to fundraise for ShelterBox after hearing about the charity’s work through Rotary and her youngest daughter who remembers seeing rows of ShelterBox tents when she was working in Africa.
Now 12, Dorothy’s twin grandsons joined her on the climb.
She says: “My knees held out, but as I neared the summit, I was quite breathless, but my grandsons were able to finish the climb for me.
“I was disappointed that I could not make the top but have to admit that for someone of senior age and with some health issues I did not too badly.”
Dorothy, who has raised more than £1,100, smashing her £700 fundraising target, has had lots of support from family, friends, and Inverurie Rotary Club, which she and her husband Alex are members of. Dorothy’s husband, daughter Fiona and partner Brian, her grandsons, and fellow Rotarians Charlie Taylor and Judy Whyte joined her on the walk. President Wilfred Weir and President Elect Kay Diack saw the group off on their fundraising challenge.
Since being formed in 2000 by a Rotary Club in Cornwall, ShelterBox has supported nearly three million people in around 100 countries. The charity works with communities and local partners to understand what people need following a disaster and tailors its aid to each response.
It has a team in Grenada following Hurricane Beryl who, along with Rotary, will be distributing tents, mosquito nets, solar lights, and cooking sets to people uprooted from their homes on the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique.
Community Fundraising Officer at ShelterBox, Louisa Arnold says: “I’ve been truly inspired by Dorothy’s grit and determination to fundraise and challenge herself throughout her life.
“Her latest adventure is certainly a challenge and we’re so thankful to Dorothy and her family for allowing ShelterBox to be part of it.
“We rely on donations to fund our work around the world and without fundraisers like Dorothy we couldn’t support people with emergency shelter.”
To find out more about fundraising for ShelterBox people can email [email protected] or for updates on the charity’s work can sign up to its mailing list.
As well as deploying to the Caribbean, ShelterBox aid is being distributed in Gaza where 1.7 million people have been affected by conflict. The charity is working with local partners to support thousands of people with tents and other essential items such as kitchen sets, blankets and water carriers.
For more information, visit Dorothy’s fundraising page.
To find out more about ShelterBox and where the charity is working, visit ShelterBox.org.
ENDS
For more information contact the press office at ShelterBox via [email protected].
Notes to Editors
- Images and captions included.
