16th October

Thirteen daredevils abseiled 450ft down the British Airways i360 on Saturday 15^th September in support of Guild Care. After a month of sponsorship collection, we can announce that over £4,500 was raised by our brave volunteers!

One participant who dared to take the plunge was Edward Whitting, the grandson of two Guild Care volunteers. Specifically, his grandfather is a volunteer minibus driver and his grandmother volunteers in the Guild Care Centre.

Edward wanted to do the abseil as it was a fantastic opportunity to raise money for a cause he has a close connection to and it was a chance to fundraise with his fellow colleagues at A R Brown & Co. Solicitors. Also, it was a chance to have fun whilst doing it dressed as Spiderman!

Of his experience, Edward said, “The build-up to the jump I personally found exhilarating, a feeling that was not shared by my compatriots on the day, I can assure you. They were rather intimidated by the thought of a 450ft abseil, as I'm sure most people would be! The worst part of the jump by far was going over the edge; being asked to lean back into nothing but 45 stories of air is more than a little anxiety inducing.

“Once over the edge of the drop, however, you forget the height and get to admire the view. You can see to the north far out over Brighton and The Downs, and to the south the channel and the newly installed wind farms. Also worth noting is at that height it is completely silent, and it stays that way until you are a few tens of feet from the ground, at which point you can begin to hear the cheers of support from those on the ground.

“I found it to be a fantastic day, and with over £1,000 raised by our firm, a very productive one as well.”

Events Fundraising Officer Juliet Hinton-Smith also braved the descent down the tower. She said, “The abseil at British Airways i360 was great fun. After going up in the pod and getting over the initial fear of having to get over the edge, the descent was amazing and the views were stunning – I would definitely do it again! The event was a great success and thank you to everyone who took part.”