Two firefighters are taking on the challenge of a 50-mile walk – each wearing 10kg of breathing apparatus equipment – to raise money for a colleague diagnosed with cancer.
Karen Land had just finished training for her dream job of becoming a firefighter in October when she was told she had breast cancer. At the time, doctors gave her three months to live.
She has since turned towards immunotherapy treatment hoping it will give her more time with her five children.
The treatment is only available privately, or at a clinic in Germany where each treatment is £5,000 – so Karen is raising funds to pay for it.
The 39-year-old from Retford is hoping to raise £100,000, and has so far gathered more than £64,000 on her JustGiving page.
Now, Chris Binch and Gary Mulligan have decided they wanted to help Karen reach her target by walking from East Leake Fire Station in the South of the county to Misterton in the North on March 3 – a distance of just over 50 miles – to raise a further £2,000.
Chris, a firefighter based at Mansfield Fire Station, said: “Our target is to do it within 16 hours which will be a real challenge, but it’s nothing compared to what Karen and Kevin are going through.
Garym, Worksop Fire Station Watch Manager, said: “I know people from within my family and friends who have suffered with cancer so it seems like the right thing to do.
“I’m looking forward to it but I know that it will hurt. It’s not the mileage that will be the difficulty but the weight.
“There will be a few blisters after we have finished but it’ll be worth it if we can reach that £2,000 target.”
Both men will complete the challenge carrying the equivalent weight of a Scott breathing apparatus set an air cylinder. This is the same equipment operational firefighters wear when attending house fires, around 10kg or 1.5 stone in weight.
Karen wrote in an update on her Facebook page last week: “The chemotherapy I am having is going to stop working quite quickly, approx six months, according to the doctor with this type of cancer, so I need to introduce the immunotherapy in the next month or two so it has time to start working before the chemo stops working.”
She added: “Would just like to thank everyone that’s donated and fund raised and made this treatment possible for me to have.”
Donations can be made to Chris and Gary’s JustGiving page.
