Fundraisers take on fastest Zipline in Europe in name of Smile For Joel

The group took on the fastest Zipline in Europe at Penrhyn Quarry, Snowdonia, in the name of Smile For Joel. and raised more than £11,000.

After safety checks, weigh-ins and kit checks the group travelled up to the highest point of Penrhyan Quarry and were faced with a terrifying view as they looked down.

Smile for Joel was set up by Wednesbury mother Suzy Evans and son Owen Richards in the wake of the Tunisian terror attack in 2015.

Suzy lost her son Joel, 19, brother and Sandwell Council worker Adrian, 49, and father Patrick, 78, in the attack, which saw 38 people killed.

It led to the charity being set up to help families torn apart by murder and terrorism, by raising awareness and supporting those in need.

The charity recently celebrated its sixth anniversary and across those years it has given support to more than 3,000 adults and children affected by murder.

Suzy said: "We had an amazing day on Saturday. Thank you to everyone who took part and donated.

"It’s been an honour to see so many people travel to Snowdonia and to take part in ZipForJoel.

"We had 24 doing it from all age groups. We advertised on our pages and had friends, family and complete strangers come along.

"We raised funds for Smile For Joel and everyone who took part got a special edition hoodie.

"None of us had done it before, it was really exciting.

"Some of these people we hadn't met before the event and met for the first time on the day."

At the time of writing, £11,400 has been raised by people who took part on the day.

The charity has many more events coming up too, including An Evening with Paul Merson on June 9 at Copthorne Hotel in Dudley and the 7th RunForJoel on September 11 at Sandwell Valley Country Park.