A PATNA woman has taken on the dizzying challenge of doing 100 skips a day in aid of a national charity which aims to encourage play in seriously ill children.
Rebecca Staff, 38, will be jumping rope for Starlight – a children’s charity which uses the power of play to make the experience of illness and treatment better for children and their families through different activities and distraction services.
And the mother-of-one, who has personally encountered the struggles that arise when youngsters are faced with grave health issues, is certainly making sure to keep the challenge interesting, such as by skipping on the River Ayr walk, in the rain and in her pyjamas.
Rebecca said: “In May I did 100 squats for Shelter UK. I’ve been on a mission to get healthy since around Christmas time so I thought it would be an easy thing to add to my general routine of getting fitter.
“Starlight then published their challenge to help seriously sick children. I’ve known some in my time who were bed ridden and it costs quite a lot of money to help provide the play that all children deserve, for example finding time around operations or finding therapists to deal with the physical and mental health issues that kids have when engaging in play or other activities so it’s a good opportunity to give young children the chance that all kids should have.
“Last Saturday I was skipping in my jammies on a river bed in Patna, this week I’ve been challenged to do 100 skips backwards. I’ve been saying to my donors, if I raise another £50, I’ll let one of them choose a challenge for me.”
She continued: “At the start I was lucky if I was pulling 10 whole skips without getting tangled up but for last two days I’ve done 100 in one go so I’m getting better. The whole point of the charity is to encourage freedom to play – I didn’t know I was going to have so much fun skipping so it’s a good way of encouraging the public to take play into consideration when it comes to children.
“Just because some don’t have the ability to do everything doesn’t mean they can’t do anything. I know some people doing the challenge who are jumping on the spot 100 times because they can’t physically do more so it’s all about having something as basic as skipping and modifying it to keep it fun.
“Everyone has the right to play, especially as a child.”
If you would like to donate, click here.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here