Black Country team take on huge abseil to raise thousands for Birmingham Children's Hospital
Brave first-time abseilers from the Black Country have raised over £3,000 for Birmingham Children's Hospital with a daring descent.
A team from Kingswinford and Wall Heath representing The Saleem Foundation took part in the 200ft abseil challenge and raised over £3,000 with the final total for the hospital close to £52,000.
The team was led by community campaigner Shaz Saleem who founded the Saleem Foundation in 2019 – former mayor of Dudley Steve Waltho is chairman and it marked its fifth anniversary yesterday.
Mr Saleem has completed bungee jumps, a 15,000ft skydive and a white-collar boxing match - and in total he has raised over £36,000 for various charities since 2012.
He said: “My son was treated at Birmingham Children's Hospital when he was just four. He had to have surgery as he had a heart murmur, the staff were amazing and need to be recognised and applauded.
"I’m so proud of every member of this amazing team who joined me in my latest crazy stunt and raised an incredible amount for an important cause and I'd like to thank all the amazing supporters that attended and cheered us on."
Alison Banner who was part of the team said: "My son passed away at BCH in April 2017 aged 12, he had anaplastic large cell lymphoma. This was for Dan."
West Midlands Ambulance Service technician Katie Cartwright said: "I said before the climb that I wanted to push through my own barriers by stepping out of my comfort zone whilst raising money for a good cause, and today I can proudly say I achieved that!"
