MK Dons Girls Regional Talent Club (RTC) star Cassidy Flynn has scaled the height of Mount Kilimanjaro – from home – to raise money for families on the island of Boa Vista.
Cassidy, who has been with the Dons’ RTC for three years and will be a member of the Under-16s squad next season, paced up her staircase 332 times every day for a full week, totalling 19,000 ft – the height of the Tanzanian mountain.
She has so far raised over £700, with £500 of those donations coming online, for a charry effort which has been set up to provide food for families on the Boa Vista island in Cape Verde. With €10 needed to feed a family of four, Cassidy has provided for over 250 people.
“Cassidy visited the island of Boa Vista last year with myself and the rest of our family and we totally fell in love with the island and the people,” Cassidy’s mum, Joanne, told mkdons.com.
“Once this global pandemic hit, the Boa Vista stopped all planes in and out, which was very important as the medical care is very limited. But, of course, they also heavily on tourism.
“It has been catastrophic as all hotels, shops, restaurants and markets are all closed, leaving people with no jobs or ways to earn money and no benefit system to rely on.
“Cassidy decided she wanted to help. Our contact on the island informed us that for just €10, you can provide a family of two to four people with a basic fit package for a week.
“She decided to set her target at £250 which would help 25 families but has already smashed this target and so far has raised nearly £700.”
With regards to the challenge itself, Joanne revealed that her daughter would sometimes spend three hours a day completing the feat – strength and determination which inspired both Joanne and Cassidy’s Dad to contribute too.
“At the beginning Cassidy thought that the challenge wouldn’t be too difficult and she plays football and is very fit but she soon realised that this wasn’t the case!
“As the week got hotter, it became more difficult and some days it took her three hours to complete!
“But, Cassidy stayed focused and determined, and completed the challenge on Sunday afternoon, with a huge round of applause from us all.”
Joanne added: “We are amazed at Cassidy’s strength, especially considering that myself and her dad were challenged to do 50 sets each for an extra donation and two days later our legs are still hurting!
“We are immensely proud of her efforts and look forward to seeing the final donation total.”
Cassidy is now brainstorming for her next fundraiser to continue helping the people of Boa Vista but, in the meantime, you can donate to her Kilimanjaro challenge by visiting her JustGiving page – click HERE to donate!
