Jessie, 10, climbs Mount Snowdon and raises over £3,367 for Saint Francis Hospice
Jessie, 10, climbed the highest mountain in Wales and England and raised over £3,367 for Saint Francis Hospice along the way. Here her proud mum Kirsty shares why Jessie wanted to fundraise for hospice care.
Saint Francis Hospice has always been special to me since it cared for my stepdad Shaun Gerrard for around 18 months before he died in 2016.
We spent every moment we could with him, and although Jessie was very young at the time, she spent a lot of time at the hospice and in the beautiful gardens.
I was planning to climb Mount Snowdon for my birthday, and I asked Jessie if she’d like to come along.
Jessie had just watched a video on YouTube about someone who had raised money for charity, and it inspired her to do the climb as an opportunity to fundraise for Saint Francis Hospice.
We set up a Go Fund Me page and shared it with family and friends and the power of social media did the rest.
On the day of the climb, Jessie was absolutely fantastic. The scenery and the lakes were spectacular, but it was tough as we had to walk up a sheer incline for 1.5 hours.
Jessie took it all in her stride and I don’t think she realised what a huge achievement it was.
It really hit me when we visited the hospice, and she was holding the cheque. I could burst with pride for her.
The timing was perfect. My birthday was on 14th March, we climbed Snowdon on 15th March, we handed in the cheque to the hospice on 18th March and 19th March is Shaun’s birthday.
I love coming to the hospice and there’s always a warm welcome when I come through the door.
I remember being scared when Shaun first came to the hospice but then I was shocked because it was the happiest, calmest and most beautiful and positive place I have ever been to.
In our darkest time, when we were sad and losing someone we loved very much, we felt happy. How the hospice is able to create an environment like that is phenomenal. It is priceless what it brings to people’s lives.
We have a leaf on the Memory Tree for Shaun and I feel inspired to carry on fundraising. Shaun is always in the back of my mind but through Jessie’s fundraising, he has been in the forefront of our minds and it is so nice to feel his presence.
