The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Children inspired by Captain Tom Moore
● Pupils take up challenge to help raise money for ARI
Aprimary school, inspired by the heroic efforts of Captain Tom Moore, has raised more than £2,500 for Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.
Staff and pupils at Cornhill School challenged themselves using the number 100 as a guide, in honour of the war veteran who raised more than £30 million for the NHS by walking laps of his garden before becoming a centenarian last month.
The effort was led by PE teacher Kat Paul-Bird, who decided to run 10km on 10 consecutive days and invited the children to think of their own fundraising endeavours.
Pupils have run, hopped, skipped, jumped and cycled their way to raising £2,700 so far.
Mrs Paul-Bird said: “There are a few pupils really pushing themselves.
“One of the first to come back with an idea was Abigail, a primary three pupil. She walked for 100 minutes a day for a week and covered more than 32 miles.
“Others have taken on
A north-east man has been providing weekly musical entertainment in support of the NHS.
Adam Lawrence has been performing music from his front garden in Burnside Road, Mintlaw big cycling challenges, particularly primary four Jakub who has been cycling 100km with his mum.”
Even head teacher Mark Evans got involved, covering 100 miles in a week by bike and on foot.
Initially setting a target of £500, the community has rallied round the cause with the total now more than five times that sum.
Mrs Paul-Bird added: “We thought £500 would be something that could hopefully make a difference every Thursday as a way of showing his appreciation to the NHS and cheering up his neighbours.
Over the past few weeks he has been joined by various musicians while following social distancing and has received “a lot of positive feedback” from those around him.
Mr Lawrence said: “It’s something I’ve got the time at the hospital but we’ve smashed that now. This is a very close-knit school and as we all work away online, this was a way to do something to get everyone involved.
“We’ve achieved way more than I had imagined but that always seems to happen with this school – they are always surprising and do everyone really proud.”
Donations have been collected at justgiving.com/ crowdfunding/cornhill100 to do, I’ve played music all my days for various bands.”
He starts around 7.30pm in time for the clap for the NHS and continues until about 9pm, playing a variety of country, 60s and certain chart songs.
His sets are shared on Facebook and viewers from Peterhead, Inverness and even relatives in Arizona have tuned in to watch.