Rich conquers fear in memory of wife
THE husband and stepdaughter of a much-loved Southport teacher and mum who died last year will perform a 200ft abseil in her memory.
Jemma Cottier, who was assistant head of the English department at Greenbank High school, died on January 8 2016, after suffering a stroke the previous month.
Jemma was the proud mum of three boys, Leon, Toby and Theo, and was just 42 years old when she passed away.
Since then her family and friends have raised over £26k for the Walton Centre Hospital Trust. to support the hospitals work in the specialist treatment of brain injuries.
Her husband, Rich, and stepdaughter, Lucy, will take on the free-fall abseil at Liverpool’s Royal Hospital, to raise money for the Walton Centre.
Rich, who has admitted being scared of heights, said: “We originally planned to do this at the cathedral, but the event was cancelled but The Royal is even higher!
“We want to raise as much as we can for the centre because that’s where Jemma spent her final weeks.
“She had a stroke the day after the school had broken up for Christmas, she loved Christmas very much
“Although a devastating time, the love and care shown towards her at the Walton Centre was deeply appreciated.”
The family has organised a number of events, such as the Three Peaks Challenge which involved climbing the three highest mountains in Great Britain in 24 hours, and hosting a phenomenal Race Night at the Vincent Hotel during last Summer.
Earlier this month, more than a dozen runners sporting bright orange “Jemma” running shirts ran the Mad Dog 10k in Jemma’s memory.
The abseil will take place on Saturday March 18.
Lucy said: “I’m really looking forward to taking part in the abseil, but I’m not so sure my dad is!”
If you can support this appeal please donate at https://www. justgiving. com/ fundraising/ abseil4jemma
If you want to fundraise in Jemma’s memory this year, or for more information, visit www. jemmawithaj.co.uk