Station crew on track to complete lifesaving Kilimanjaro challenge

A team of staff from Loughborough Station are on track to raise £3,000 to support the lifesaving work of The Air Ambulance Service by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.

Three intrepid adventurers Phil Douglas, Matt Norman and John Evans, have embarked on the challenge of a lifetime in aid of the charity which operates the Derbyshire, Leicestershire & Rutland (DLRAA), Warwickshire & Northamptonshire Air Ambulance (WNAA) as well as the national Children’s Air Ambulance (TCAA).

On 01 February 2023, the Loughborough Station team departed to tackle Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest free-standing mountain in the world, standing at a spectacular 19,340 ft above sea level – with two of them making it to the Base Camp already, and will summit tonight, 07 February.

Thanks to the support of the local community, they have already managed to raise over £2,500 so far towards their £3,000 target. The total includes raising £837 from a Christmas hamper competition, a donation station where people read a book on the train for a small gift, and a generous donation of £400 from Loughborough Train Station.

Commenting on the challenge, Phil Douglas said: “We decided to pick The Air Ambulance Service as our charity to support due to the amazing work these guys do and the recognition this challenge will bring to help them to keep doing what they do.

“We know this isn’t going to be an easy task for us as a group. It has involved a lot of training and eventually acclimatisation to complete but we are focused on getting through this challenge.”

TAAS Fundraising Manager Lynn Wood added, “I am so proud of how amazing the team are doing, they’ve been training hard for their challenge with plenty of walking and running, and during this have managed to scale the highest mountain in England, Scafell Pike and even trekking Glencoe in Scotland.”

“We receive no government funding and rely entirely on donations for every mission. The generous public support is vital to keep our air ambulances and Critical Care Cars operational 24/7, 365 days per year. I want to thank them for taking on this amazing challenge meaning we can continue to provide our vital services across the UK.”

To support the team in their challenge, people can donate to their JustGiving page here.