Brave Donna takes the plunge for charity
Titan bungee leap raises thousands
A Halfway woman took an almighty leap recently for charity.
Donna Sutherland, 36, leapt off the Titan crane in Clydebank to raise money for Pancreatic Cancer Scotland.
And she’s already earned £2,213 for the cause.
She was inspired to take the challenge because of her friend Fiona Brown, who works for the charity.
Donna, a teacher at Calderglen High in East Kilbride, explained: “I’d been at school with Fiona and she was in the year above me.
“I bumped into her last year in the supermarket and we became friends, and I learned more about pancreatic cancer through her work there.
“Pancreatic cancer is something where there hasn’t been any progress in expected lifespan within the past 40 years, which is horrific, so I wanted to do something to raise money and awareness.
“It needed to be something that would take me out of my comfort zone so I thought about doing the bungee jump.”
The actual experience was over in a flash for Donna.
She added: “It felt a bit like flying and there was a lot of adrenaline.
“However the lift was broken so I had to walk the 256 steps just to get to the top before I jumped - that meant my legs were like jelly when I got there!
“The staff were all fantastic at explaining everything, and then you just put your hands in front like Superman and jumped off. “It was done in about 45 seconds. “My husband Martin was convinced I wouldn’t do it because although I’m OK with things like rollercoasters I didn’t manage to do an aerial training course a while back.
“When I told my family I was doing this they were pretty shocked but they were all there on the day to support me.”
The crane itself had been lit purple to raise awareness of pancreatic cancer.
Each year around 9,500 people in the UK are diagnosed with the disease.
Donna hopes her jump will raise more awareness, as well as cash.
She said: “I’m totally over the moon at the amount we have raised because my target was £500.
“I felt that people need to be aware of what the early warning symptoms are as well, as it might help save their lives.
“It can be things like unexplained weight loss, jaundice, loss of appetite or changes to bowel movements, and if you’re having issues with that then get it checked out.”
Visit www.justgiving.com/ fundraising/donna-sutherland3 to donate to Donna’s cause. Or visit www.pancanscot.org for further information on Pancreatic Cancer Scotland.
It felt a bit like flying and there was a lot of adrenaline