After months of training, planning and fundraising, a team of 15 individuals from construction company McCrory Holdings embarked on a daunting physical challenge all in the name of charity: to walk the National 3 Peaks (23 miles) in 24 hours.
At 9am, Friday the 11th of June, after necessary bacon butties and multiple brews, the team boarded two vans – manned by their Commercial Director Andrew and Health and Safety Manager, Ruth. The feeling in the air was a resounding mix of nervousness and anticipation.
The team drove for 7 long hours to the start of the National 3 Peaks – Ben Nevis, Scotland.
The plan:
Behind the scenes, the Just Giving fundraising page was busy as ever with donations piling in from friends, family and business partners. The original target of £5,000 was already achieved by 10am and was rising steadily.
All donations were for The Manchester Youth Zone in Harpurhey and HideOut Youth Zone in Gorton. Since visiting and volunteering with the charities over the last year, McCrory Holdings were not only amazed at the charity’s works within the youth community of North and East Manchester, but shocked at the statistics surrounding the deprived areas. With a 16.2% unemployment rate and 48% of families living below the poverty line, the two youth zones were significant support systems for many vulnerable families, single parents and children. The charity’s rely on donations and volunteer work to run. Their services extend from after school activities, weekly counselling and a safe place to relax, to food hamper deliveries and free food banks for families to access.
The team began their 24 hours at 5pm at the bottom of Ben Nevis. 5 hours later, they were back at the vans and beginning the journey to Scafell Pike – a 6 hour drive. With little to no sleep and some food on the move, they were at the bottom of Scafell Pike, gearing up for another gruelling walk.
4 hours later, almost like groundhog day, back in the vans. A final 6 hour drive and they found themselves at the base of Snowdon. The team only had 2.5 hours left to complete the task in 24 hours. Robbie, Oliver, Darren H literally ran and managed to get up and down back to the vans in 2 hours 20 minutes, completing the 23 miles in 24 hours. The rest of the team were close behind and it was done!
“It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” said Adam, Head of Sales and Marketing. He admits “there were times I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it”, particularly in the midst of walking Snowdon. He explained “you could see the top of the mountain and it just wasn’t getting any closer”. Nonetheless, they all finished strong.
At just over £8,000 the Just Giving page set up to fundraise for the event is still live and accepting further donations: justgiving.com/mccrory-holdings
Well done to the McCrory Holdings team!
