Daring dive from the Chairman’s wife raises £6,000 for Macmillan Caring Locally

In support of the recently unveiled plans for a new Macmillan Caring Locally (MCL) Unit at Christchurch Hospital, Carolyn Emsley has braved a sponsored tandem skydive. Carolyn is the wife of Michael Emsley, the Chairman of Macmillan Caring Locally. Jumping into the sky from 10,000 feet and free falling for 30 seconds at around 130mph, Carolyn then parachuted mid-air before landing safely back on earth. Touching down, Carolyn has raised £6,000 for the charity.

Going off without a hitch, Carolyn bravely plunged into the skies one week after her Golden wedding anniversary. All her fundraising efforts will now be added to the £5million already reserved for the new MCL building. Having completed her skydive, Carolyn hopes to raise awareness for the charity, which still requires an estimated £4million to complete this major rebuild project.

Macmillan Caring Locally provides enhanced care to patients with advanced, progressive, or incurable illnesses such as cancer. In recent years a huge increase in the number of referrals has seen 581 patients in 2006 grow to 1543 in 2016. It is therefore in desperate need of expansion.

Carolyn Emsley commented, “I wanted to do something special to support MCL. Despite the fact that my husband is chairman, I care deeply about the charity and the valuable support it provides to people and their families each year. I was delighted to raise £6,000 for this excellent cause and hope my effort will inspire others to complete their own fundraising projects.’’

Michael Emsley added, “Having a fear of heights, when Carolyn told me she wanted to undertake a sponsored skydive I was certainly a little worried to say the least. She has, however, made me so proud and I am amazed by all the support she has received. Individual fundraising projects such as this make a huge difference at MCL. Whilst we appreciate donations of any size, we appeal to local corporates and organisations to help us reach our £4million target for our new unit.’’

The new building in Christchurch will help to improve the work of Macmillan Caring Locally’s dedicated inpatient nurses; specialist palliative care nurses who visit patients, doctors, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, family support team and the Royal Bournemouth Hospital palliative care team.