Carers skydive to raise charity cash

A team of three brave carers from a care agency in Godalming took to the skies this weekend in a bid to raise money for the Alzheimer's Society.

As care workers they usually have their feet firmly on the ground, but on Saturday, CHD Care at Home carers Emma Leahy, Emma Packer and Emily Reynolds travelled to Hinton Airfield in Northamptonshire, where they took on a new challenge - diving 10,000 feet from a plane, and raising over £1,500 for the Alzheimer's Society in the process.

She said: "The cause is so meaningful to us because we visit so many people who are living with Alzheimer's and dementia and they all mean so much to us. They're the reason we do this job.

"But I also wanted to skydive in honour of my grandad, who suffers with Alzheimer's himself. On the days he looks at me and isn't quite sure who I am, I know he is just holding our memories so tight he can't let them out. I hope I've made him proud today."

Speaking after the skydive, Emma Leahy, 39, added: "The skydive was an amazing experience and I would recommend it to anyone. I can't wait to do it again and hope to get even more team members and my manager involved next time!"

Rebecca Connolly, Regional Manager for CHD Care at Home, said: "We are incredibly proud of Emma, Emma and Emily for their fundraising efforts and for the bravery they've shown by completing this skydiving challenge.

"We see them go above and beyond every day in taking great care of our service users, and this just shows the level of dedication they have to improving the lives of others too. We're honoured to have them as part of our team."