A 77-year-old man living in a Suffolk care home has raised over £1,000 to help a fellow resident by following in the footsteps of Captain Tom Moore.
Richard Coleby, a resident at Glebe House Residential Home in Hollesley, decided to do laps of the home’s garden following the lead of Sir Tom, who raised over £32million for NHS charities.
Mr Coleby, who has poor mobility after having a stroke, managed to do 520 laps in just three weeks.
Trish Middleton, manager of Glebe House Residential Home, said: “Richard wanted to join in the fundraising and was inspired to walk laps of our garden, just like Captain Tom.
“He did extraordinarily well and managed 520 laps of the garden in just three weeks.
“When Richard first moved into Glebe House last year, he had poor mobility after suffering a stroke.
“He wasn’t very confident on his feet and had muscle wastage from inactivity.
“His mobility and confidence has improved greatly while he’s been at the home, but it’s been boosted further during his walking challenge. Richard used to always walk with the support of a carer but now he’s confident enough to walk with just the aid of his walker.
“We are all very proud of him.”
Activities coordinator Tracey Fletcher set up a Just Giving page for their fundraising efforts, which was promoted on the home’s Facebook page, including regular photos and videos of Richard’s progress.
Members of staff at Glebe House also decided to help fundraise and took turns in a skipping challenge, achieving 4,306 skips between them.
The money raised by Mr Coleby has been used to buy a special chair for another resident at the home, 96-year-old Ada Newman, who is unable to walk.
Speaking about his mammoth challenge Mr Coleby said:“I just wanted to play my part in helping to raise the money.
“If it means it gives Ada better quality of life, it was worth every step.”
“The new chair is already making a massive difference to Ada,” said Ms Middleton.
“It’s designed to be accessed with a hoist so that we can easily transfer Ada from her bed to the chair, and it’s comfortable enough for her to remain seated in the chair in the lounge or dining room, so she can enjoy the company of her fellow residents.”
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