Shropshire soldier's challenge raises £5,000 for charity
A gruelling physical challenge organised by a Shropshire soldier has raised more than £5,000 for the charity which supports service personnel.
Sergeant Tony McEvilly, of the 1st Battalion the Royal Irish Regiment, and a group of fellow soldiers took on the 4x4x48 challenge in aid of SSAFA in Mali at New Year.
It involves running four miles every four hours for 48 hours. Wearing body armour and carrying a dismantled heavy machine gun in 35C heat is optional.
Sgt McEvilly, now based at Clive Barracks near Market Drayton, was among members of Operation Newcombe's Long Range Recce Group, working as part of a UN stabilisation mission in Mali.
He was aiming to raise £1,000 but ended up raising five times that amount.
He said: "I knew I wanted to raise money for a military charity, and after reading up on lots of different charities, I chose SSAFA simply because of the wide variety of work it does and the impact it has providing practical, emotional, and financial support to our forces and their families."
Sgt McEvilly explained that the 90-strong group started at 12noon on New Year’s Eve and finished at 8am on January 2.
He added: “With it being so close to Christmas, and with money a bit tight for some, I set what I thought was an ambitious target of £1,000.
"To have hit five times that amount was a big shock to me, as people really dug deep at a time of year when most people have very little spare money.
"But as well as the amazing amount raised for SSAFA, the task group has come together, and we’re planning more events to challenge ourselves and raise money for charities."
Tony has now closed his GoFundMe page for this challenge, but for more information about SSAFA, visit ssafa.org.uk.
