Six-year-old Worthing boy and his mum complete Captain Tom 100 Challenge for Chestnut Tree House children’s hospice

A Worthing mum and her six-year-old son cycled 100 laps of Homefield Park to complete the Captain Tom 100 Challenge for Chestnut Tree House children’s hospice.
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When Kirsty Meddins heard about this new fundraising initiative, taking place over the bank holiday to celebrate Captain Sir Tom Moore’s life and amazing achievements during his birthday weekend, she was keen to sign up and talked with Finley about what they would do.

Kirsty, of Sugden Road, said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has had a catastrophic effect on charities, with the cancellation of thousands of events and the loss of billions in income. At a time when vulnerable members of society need them most, charities have had to cut services, furlough staff and some have even shut down.

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“Captain Tom stepped up to help, taking on his famous walk to support the NHS Covid-19 appeal and inspiring millions to donate to the cause.

Finley Meddins and his mum Kirsty have been raising money for Chestnut Tree House children's hospice with their Captain Tom 100 ChallengeFinley Meddins and his mum Kirsty have been raising money for Chestnut Tree House children's hospice with their Captain Tom 100 Challenge
Finley Meddins and his mum Kirsty have been raising money for Chestnut Tree House children's hospice with their Captain Tom 100 Challenge

“Captain Tom was a true inspiration. Finley and I talked about this incredible challenge and what we could do to raise money and further support a local charity that we already support.

“Finley loves riding his bike, so we decided for our Captain Tom 100 Challenge to ride 100 laps around our local park between us, which equates to just over 34 miles.”

They did two practice sessions in the two weeks leading up to the challenge and clocked up 30 laps each.

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The challenge started on Friday night, after school, when they managed 43 laps, and on Saturday morning, they did a further 60 laps to complete it.

Finley Meddins and his mum Kirsty have been raising money for Chestnut Tree House children's hospice with their Captain Tom 100 ChallengeFinley Meddins and his mum Kirsty have been raising money for Chestnut Tree House children's hospice with their Captain Tom 100 Challenge
Finley Meddins and his mum Kirsty have been raising money for Chestnut Tree House children's hospice with their Captain Tom 100 Challenge

Finley’s grandparents, Jill and Graham Meddins, were sad they were not able to come and cheer him on, as they live in Stratford upon Avon and are unable to travel at the moment, but they said he and his mum did an amazing job.

“We would like to send huge congratulations and say how proud we are of our six-year-old grandson Finley and his mummy, Kirsty, for completing the Captain Tom 100 Challenge.

“It turned out that they did 38.8 miles between them – 19 miles is quite an achievement for a six-year-old.

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“They have raised £560 and £105 in Gift Aid in aid of Chestnut Tree House children’s hospice, which we think is amazing.”

People all over the world were invited to take on the Captain Tom 100 Challenge to raise funds for a charity of their choice.

Caroline Roberts-Quigley, fundraiser at Chestnut Tree House, said: “Like many other charities, we have been hugely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The closure of our shops and cancellation of fundraising events has meant a significant loss in income, at a time when children and families have needed us more than ever.

“We are so grateful to Kirsty and Finley for taking part in the Captain Tom 100 and choosing to support Chestnut Tree House.”

Visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/finley-and-kirstys-captain-tom-100-challenge for more information and to make a donation.

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