Grandmother to wing walk for charity

Christine Grundy, a grandmother in her 80’s, is set to raise funds for older people in Shropshire by undertaking a wing walk challenge in support of Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin.

Christine is no stranger to adrenaline fuelled activities having previously completed a tandem sky-dive in Australia and the world’s fastest zip wire in Eryri (Snowdonia). The wing walk will involve her standing on the wing of a plane while it's in flight and dates to the early days of aviation when it was initially a daredevil stunt.

Christine’s courageous endeavour will take place on 21 May at a former RAF Station near Cirencester, and she’s set up a JustGiving page to start her fundraising for Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin.

The charity is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year and Christine wants the money she raises to go towards helping older people that struggle with feelings of loneliness and isolation. Some of the funds will go to the Market Drayton day centre that Christine regularly attends and is one of the many groups that Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin provide to bring people together for an opportunity to meet friends, have lunch and take part in activities.

“The charity provides a vital meeting place for us to socialise and offer mutual support,” said Christine. “I want to do exciting things in what remains of my life and when I decided to do a wing walk, I thought I could make it a fundraiser while I’m at it.”

“We all think Christine is amazing,” added Sheila Ottolini, a volunteer at the centre. “The money she is raising will make a real difference to the lives of older people across the county.”

As part of their 75th anniversary Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin aim to raise £75,000. A variety of local events have been planned during 2025 to recognise this milestone and the funds raised will support vital services like befriending, offering social and wellbeing activities and providing information and advice.

Heather Osborne, Chief Executive at Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin, expressed her appreciation of Christine’s bravery and support by saying: “We are very grateful to Christine for taking on such a unique fundraising challenge. One of our aims is to change the perception and stereotyping of older people and Christine’s charity wing walk certainly puts our ethos of ‘Let’s change how we age’ into action!”

If you'd like to support Christine, you can make a donation via her JustGiving page.

For more information and how to get involved in Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin’s 75th anniversary, or even take on a challenge like Christine, please email fundraising@ageukstw.org.uk or call 01743 233 123.