Post woman takes on shark dive for charity

Stephanie Wilson, 22 from Malpas near Whitchurch, will be taking part in a shark dive on December 14 to raise money and awareness for the Stroke Association – and she won't even have the protection of a cage.

Surrounded by Sand Tiger Sharks, Nurse Sharks and Lemon Sharks, Miss Wilson will be face to face with the huge fish at the Blue Planet Aquarium in Cheshire.

The charity was announced as Royal Mail Group's Charity of the Year after receiving nearly 40,000 votes from staff. But Miss Wilson was also inspired by her sister Christine who is a works for the charity, helping to support stroke survivors as they come to terms with a life after stroke.

Miss Wilson said: "I hear the impact that my sister has on the stroke survivors and the families that she supports in her day to day role. I want to support the fantastic work the Stroke Association does, and to ensure they can be there for even more families who have been affected by stroke.

"I've taken part in fundraisers before, including 10km runs and half marathons but this is something completely different and the challenge really stood out to me!

"I'm a little nervous about the dive, but really excited about coming face-to-face with the sharks. I'm also very grateful to everyone who has sponsored me so far."

Miss Wilson will begin the day by having training in a classroom environment learning all about the animals she will be diving with and the principles of scuba diving.

She will then be kitted out with her scuba gear and will have a go in the training pool before taking on the real challenge in the main tank.

Laura McMullin, regional fundraiser from the Stroke Association, said: "Every year there are approximately 152,000 strokes in the UK – that's one stroke every three and a half minutes.

"We rely on people like Stephanie to help change lives and together we can conquer stroke."

For more information about strokes please contact 0303 3033 100 or go to www.stroke.org.uk.

To sponsor Stephanie visit: www.sponsorme.co.uk/stephaniewilson/shark-dive-for-the-stroke-association