Tom Smith

Martin diets, walks and flies

Fundraising for Guy's & St. Thomas' Hospital Kidney Patients' Association
£1,922
raised of £2,100 target
Donations cannot currently be made to this page
fasts and flies, 29 August 2017
We raise funds to support patients with kidney disease.

Story

Went the day well?

The epitaph in the subject line above is quite unnecessary, as the following link shows:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oegz95GsLKE&feature=youtu.be

As you can see from the video, 29th August at Headcorn Airfield was a sunny day and, until I was on the wings of a plane going at 135mph, there was little breeze. 

Once up on the wings and off the ground, I realised that it would be a noisy flight - I was right behind the propellers, and there is a fair amount of wind noise at that speed.   It was the next day that I realised how much I had been bracing against the force of air coming against me as we flew, as my legs ached.

You will see some of the gestures I made during the approx. 15 minute flight - there is a limit to how expressive one can be as a strap-on on a 1942 Stearman.  When we were not flying past the onlookers on the ground I stood and gazed, as tranquilly as I could, at the view.

I enjoyed some food before the walk and afterwards I enjoyed rather more, as well as a few drinks at a Shepherd Neame pub whilst being driven back home.

Of course, to put it in perspective, the week before two 9-year-old girls had done this and the day before a 93-year-old man had spent 81 minutes on top of a biplane flying across the Irish Sea.

If you wish to support my favourite charity - Guy's & St Thomas's Hospital Kidney Patients Association (GSTTKPA) - I hope you will agree to donate to the GSTTKPA.

Why the GSTTKPA?  In 2006 I donated a kidney to a friend and the operation and subsequent aftercare were at Guy’s. This is a way of again giving thanks - to all the staff who were so kind and professional and for the quality of the anaesthetic used - by raising money for the GSTTKPA.

All donations made will be much appreciated by me and, more importantly, by the charity.

Thank you.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.

Share this story

About the charity

We aim to raise sufficient funds to help kidney patients of Guy's and St Thomas' and the Evelina London Children's Hospital, their families and carers achieve a good quality of life. In addition we support kidney research and promotes awareness of kidney disease and organ donation.

Donation summary

Total raised
£1,921.99
+ £281.25 Gift Aid
Online donations
£1,353.99
Offline donations
£568.00

* Charities pay a small fee for our service. Find out how much it is and what we do for it.