Spritely Pat O’Riordan from Ferndown has decided at the age of 82 to take to the air for the first time on the top of a plane, rather than inside it.
Her daring wing walk is in aid of Alzheimer’s Research, which affected her mother who died 13 years ago. “That’s my motivation,” said Pat who has a great sense of adventure and once got lost in the jungle in Malaya.
Not one for keeping her feet on the ground, Pat has parasailed all over the world and is also a hot air balloon fanatic.
“I play golf, badminton, walk a lot and do anything else that happens to be going,” her eyes twinkle.
A health services manager until she retired, Pat is determined to raise lots of money because she sees Alzheimer’s becoming a huge problem in the future. She is fortunate to have the backing of Ferndown Golf Club where she is known for her charity work, but if you want to sponsor Pat, you can find her on justgiving.com.
“The wing walk will be great fun. I’ll be up there for about 20 minutes, so I’ll have to wrap up warm,” said Pat.
Think of her on 16 May at Compton Abbas airfield, or look up in the skies and see if you can spot her.
Will a parachute jump be next? Pat wasn’t too sure – but let’s wait and see.
