By Isle of Wight Observer
Keen Island cyclist Mike Ward has set himself the daunting challenge of cycling 4,000 miles in a bid to raise £4,000 for the Mountbatten Hospice.
Mike, proprietor of Ward House Mortgage and Life in Ryde, said: “Because of the difficult times we find ourselves in due to the Coronavirus and the affects resulting from the lockdown and the Government legislations, many charities and organisations are going to be financially disadvantaged with revenue extremely reduced.
“With the above in mind, I have set myself a challenge to support the Mountbatten Hospice by cycling ‘4,000 miles to raise £4,000’. To date, I have cycled 2,007 miles and will expect to have to cycle over 430 hours to achieve the target. Once completed, this would mean that I would have equivalently travelled around the Island approximately 62 times.”
Mike continued: “I am sure than many of us have had to utilise the services of the hospice and therefore will fully appreciate the valuable service given by them at the critical times for the patients.
“Unfortunately, this year they had to cancel ‘Walk the Wight’ which would normally bring in at least £250,000. In addition, all the charity shops are closed, and therefore no revenue is being received, which I expect would be a combined loss of around £1million.
“The hard part for me is to try to raise the £4,000, and any donations would be greatly appreciated.”
If you would like to support Mike, and at the same time make a donation to the hospice, just go to the Just Giving link page at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Michael-Ward47 or pick up a sponsorship form at his office, 39 Union Street, Ryde, Isle of Wight, PO33 2AB. Tel:01983 811505. You can also donate through his Facebook page.
