Four novice canoeists from Aire Valley Homes Leeds have set off this morning (Monday 23 September) from Liverpool to paddle their way to Leeds by Friday 27 September. Their aim is to raise £20k for Yorkshire Cancer Centre at St James’ Hospital.
Their evening stop overs along the Leeds & Liverpool Canal are planned for Wigan, Burnley and Skipton.
To coincide with the last week of the Leeds’ ALMOs, staff are raising money for the cause by holding a week of fund raising that includes cake sales, curry days, raffles, guess the weight of the baby due that week and an auction for Leeds Rhinos’ signed shirt and rugby ball. From 1 October, a new housing service will replace the three ALMOs as the housing service is brought back within Leeds City Council.
To cheer our ‘Vikings’, as they are affectionately known, home, staff will be on the canal side at Navigation House on Friday having a lunchtime barbecue.
Simon Costigan, Chief Executive of Aire Valley Homes Leeds had this to say about our canoe heroes:
“This is a mammoth task and I am really proud of these four amateur canoeists who until recently had never even been in a canoe before. They have been training hard over the last few months to ensure that they complete the challenge and everybody at Aire Valley Homes we will be cheering them on, especially on the Friday when they will successfully complete their challenge by arriving at Navigation House”.
The staff have bought their own equipment and have been building up their stamina for the last few months to make sure they complete the route. So far they have raised sponsorship of just over £16k, if you would like to help this worthy cause you can donate online at: www.justgiving.com/aire-valley-vikings.
