46ft abseil for 83-year-old Friendly Bus member!

Shirley Davies is taking on a 46ft abseil in July to raise money for the small community transport charity.

Having heard about The Friendly Bus’ new fundraising campaign to buy a new minibus (or two!) Shirley didn’t hesitate to book in for an abseil in hope of raising money for her favourite charity who regularly take her on days out and swimming. Shirley has completed a warm-up abseil at Telford Town Park to find her “abseiling legs” ahead of the big descent at Nescliffe Rockface.  

Several of The Friendly Bus minibuses are costing the charity significantly more and more to keep them on the road, having driven over 100,000 miles. In December 2023 the full brunt of this was felt when their main wheelchair-accessible minibus was off the road in need of a new gearbox – reducing capacity to take members out. CEO, Marie Monk-Hawksworth said “Unfortunately when the minibuses break down, it isn’t just about inconvenience. Many of our members rely on our services to retain their independence or even see someone that week. If we can’t run the service, it really does come down to our members making do with what’s in the cupboard, feeling lonely or affecting their mental health. We don’t want to be in that position again, hence launching the campaign to replace at least one of our minibuses.”

The ‘Help us buy a bus’ campaign was launched in May 2024. You can visit the charity’s JustGiving page to make a donation www.justgiving.com/campaign/thefriendlybus, find out more on their website www.friendlybus.co.uk or follow their news on their Facebook page www.facebook.com/thefriendlybus.