Round the county walk planned by retiring charity chief Julia
A Shropshire charity chief is taking steps - tens of thousands of them in fact - to retire in style.
Julia Baron, the chief executive of Community Resource, announced earlier this year her plans to step down in August after more than 22 years at the helm.
Now she has set her sights on one last feat to bring awareness of the charity that works to support people to stay active and connected to their community. Her six day walking challenge also something of a lap of honour of the county and a chance to say a few thank yous.
Julia said: “I’m a keen walker but Shropshire is a big county so I know this will be quite the feat!
"What will keep me going in those difficult moments is meeting all the people we’ve helped over the years and raising money for people that the charity will then be able to help in the future.”
She added: “Community Resource has a long history of helping communities in Shropshire, and I feel privileged to be part of that history.
"This challenge also gives me the chance to share what we do with as many people as possible so that the charity’s future is as rich as its past.”
Julia will be kicking off her epic trail on Wednesday May 4 from Kingsland Bridge in Shrewsbury and will finish at Tilstock Bradbury Village Hall, Whitchurch the following week.
She will be pounding the highways and byways for between 10 an 15 miles each day. She will also be stopping off at organisations and services that have been supported by the charity.
And there is a Just Giving page too for people to chip in to help Shrewsbury-based Community Resource to continue to support communities facing challenges across the county.
And on Friday Julia took some practice steps on the Kingsland Bridge, near the big Shropshire Way walking route sign in the county town, to prepare for her challenge.
She will be stopping off at places including Bayston Hill Memorial Hall, the Lyneal Trust near Ellesmere and Bishop’s Castle Foodbank, and will be joined on the route by local people who have been helped by or worked with the charity.
Here are the details of the full route:
Wednesday May 4: – Shrewsbury to Dorrington
Thursday May 5 – Oswestry
Friday May 6 – Haughmond to Wem
Monday May 9 – Ironbridge to Wellington
Tuesday May 10 – Bishop’s Castle to Clun
Wednesday May 11 – Ellesmere to Whitchurch
To find out more about the challenge and to support Julia, visit www.justgiving.com/campaign/Juliasontheway
