How far is it from London to Bangalore? The team at KBE Drinks knows exactly how far – and they have the blisters to prove it!
Five members of staff from KBE Drinks took on the challenge of running a total of 5,000 miles between them during 2020. This is the distance from London to their company headquarters in Bangalore, India. Twelve months (and one pandemic!) later and the team at KBE Drinks have raised over £2,750 to support the North West Air Ambulance Charity’s lifesaving service.
The five runners, Neil Leamey, Shaun Goode, Damon Swarbrick, Adrian Devlin, and Will Cronshaw, were supported by colleague Karen Murray. With other fundraising plans scuppered by the effects of the pandemic, the five runners were still able to complete their 5000-mile challenge, and their fundraising page remains actively taking donations – www.justgiving.com/London2Bangalore.
The runners have a personal connection to NWAA. Neil is from the North West and was attended to by NWAA’s crew back in December 2015. Neil suffered a fractured skull after he fell off a ladder whilst putting up his Christmas decorations. Five years on from the incident, Neil has made a full recovery, but the NWAA still is close to his heart.
2020 was the first time KBE Drinks had chosen to support a charity for the year, and we’re honoured they chose the North West Air Ambulance. Operating 365 days a year, the service brings lifesaving enhanced pre-hospital care directly to patients in need across the North West. NWAA’s crew of highly skilled specialist HEMS paramedics, doctors, and pilots manning three helicopters and rapid response vehicles, often attending some of the most traumatic and life-threatening incidents in the region. The charity relies on generous public and corporate support to fund its missions, needing to raise over £9.5 million a year to remain operational.
Chris Andrews, Corporate Partnership Officer at North West Air Ambulance Charity, said “Neil, Shaun, Damon, Adrian and Will have worked so hard throughout the year to complete their running challenge. To keep their efforts up over such a long period of time, and throughout a pandemic too, is a fantastic achievement. We are so grateful for their support of North West Air Ambulance Charity, and also to Karen and the rest of the KBE Drinks team.”
Feeling inspired to fundraise? The NWAA team is on hand to help bring your idea to life. To get inspiration or talk to the team about your plans, call 0800 587 4570 or email fundraising@nwaa.net