Mary prepares for her first skydive - at the age of 82!

A Louth woman will be taking to the skies for her first ever skydive later this month - just a few days after celebrating her 82nd birthday!
Mary Clover has been fundraising for the Air Ambulance for several years.Mary Clover has been fundraising for the Air Ambulance for several years.
Mary Clover has been fundraising for the Air Ambulance for several years.

Mary Clover, of High Holme Road, will be raising funds for the Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance - and she is hoping to raise thousands of pounds.

Mary has been a dedicated fundraiser for the Air Ambulance in recent years, and she walked all the way from Louth to Skegness for the last two years - raising over £4,000 for the charity.

And, with her upcoming skydive rapidly approaching, Mary hopes she will be able to raise an even higher amount of money this year.

Mary told the Leader: “I just feel I want to do it because it helps everybody.

“If anybody has an accident, the Air Ambulance can get them to the hospital quicker and increases the chances of their life being saved.

“My sister (Mrs Towse) used to do fundraising for them too, but unfortunately she can’t do it any more. I feel I want to carry on doing things.”

Mary added that she is really looking forward to the upcoming tandem skydive, which will take place on Sunday, June 30 - and said she has become more adventurous and more of a thrill-seeker as she has got older.

George Overton, Director of Fundraising & Communications at Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance, said: “We cannot thank Mary enough for her incredible fundraising efforts.

“As a charity, we receive no direct Government funding, meaning we solely rely on the generosity of people like Mary who are willing to take on an array of challenges to raise funds for our life-saving service.

“The money that Mary has raised will help keep our Ambucopter in the sky, providing critical care to patients across Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire who are facing the most serious of illnesses and traumatic injuries.

“We are incredibly grateful to the people and businesses who show us such wonderful support, as without them, we simply could not continue to do what we do.”

• To find out more about Mary’s fundraising efforts and make a donation, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/mary-clover2.