A DIVING club  have raised thousands of pounds for a charity that provides special days for seriously ill people, with a little help from a businessman.

Mid Herts Divers in Welwyn Garden City, have raised £2,000 over the last 2 years for their chosen charity The Willow Foundation using prizes donated by Kent Tooling.

In his latest act of generosity John Perrin from Kent Tooling offered a £150 voucher to anyone sponsoring club member Paul Rosendale to row the distance of the English Channel.

Paul Rosendale who raised £825, said: “Kent Tooling simply makes some of the best diving products around. Their reels and ratchet reels are literally bombproof.

“I was amazed when John from Kent Tooling kindly donated a £150 on-line shopping voucher to help me raise funds for the Willow Foundation.

“Any club member or partner who donated a multiple of £10 was given one free entry into a prize draw to win this fantastic prize. Anyone donating £20 was given two free entries and so on.”

The prize was won by Dawn Blackman, who sponsored Paul more than £40.

Dawn spent the voucher on a Cave Diving Reel and a self-inflating DSMB.

This is not the first time John has supported the club to raise money for the Willow Foundation who are based in Hatfield. In 2010 he donated prizes to a raffle and auction that raised £1,175.

John said: “I am delighted to be able to support Mid Herts Divers to raise money for such a worthwhile cause. This is the second time I have done this and I hope to continue my support in the future".

For more information about Kent Tooling visit their website www.divingproducts.co.uk

A team of divers cycled the distance of the English Channel all underwater on exercise bikes.

Twenty-four people each pedalled a mile in the challenge – raising £2,954 for Sport Relief 2012.

Event organiser Dan Hodkin, from Mid Herts Divers in Welwyn Garden City, said: “At least twenty four miles were cycled. To put that in to context that’s about the distance of the English Channel.

“We raised an amazing amount of money and just as importantly everyone had a brilliant time achieving it.”

The event which was held at Gildenburgh Water, near Whittlesey, drew a lot of attention from other divers at the site on Saturday.

As a result the 14 members of Mid Herts Divers were joined by another 10 divers from various clubs who also wanted to be part of the action.

The exercise bikes involved in the challenge have been left at the site on a platform 10 metres below the surface.

“We hope that they bring a lot of enjoyment to divers for many years to come,” added Dan who is already looking for ideas for Sport Relief 2014.

“It’s going to be really hard to top this event in a couple of year’s time.”

Mid Herts Divers Buoyancy and Trim workshop at Guildenburgh Water. April 2012 filmed on a GoPro.

Buoyancy & Trim demo Guildenburgh

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A DIVER stayed on dry land for his latest fundraising challenge – rowing the distance of the English Channel.

Paul Rosendale, a member of Mid Herts Divers from Welwyn Garden City, raised over £2,200 by rowing the equivalent of the Strait of Dover – 21 miles – in an amazing 2 hours, 48 minutes and 19 seconds.

Paul formally of  The Paddocks, Codicote, said: “This wasn’t a one mile fun run or a three mile charity stroll. This was the rowing of the equivalent of a marathon and was expected to take between three and four hours.

“Anyone who has spent anytime on one of these rowing machines knows that this is extremely hard work.”

He was supported during the feat on Friday at Ericsson UK, Reading, where he works, by his colleague Darren Sherwood.

The money raised from the event will be split between the Willow Foundation, Dingley Wish Fund and Berkshire Cancer Centre Fund, a charity close to Darren’s heart.

In November 2011, Darren was diagnosed with skin cancer. His first minor operation resulted in fifteen stitches in his chest and six in his calf. He thought that was the end of the scare until further results came back from the surgery - the mole was in fact Melanoma skin cancer. 

Darren had to undergo further surgery to remove more tissue form the affected areas and a lymph node investigation to identify if the cancer had spread further. He is now classed as being “in remission” for the next six years with regular check ups every three months.

“This is the reason that raising funds for cancer is so personal and important to Darren. He classes himself as “one of the lucky ones” and strives to help others who have not been so lucky. There are many forms of cancer ending thousands of people’s lives, including one of his neighbours who died after a two year battle,” added Paul.

“Darren stands by this motto: ‘Think positive at all times. Positive thoughts can help someone to beat cancer, sickness or depression. Live every day as though it is your last’.”

Paul was sponsored generously by his friends at Mid Herts Divers.

Clive Murphy Diving Officer at Mid Herts Divers said: “Paul completed this amazing task and raised a fantastic amount in sponsorship money for charity.

“Well done Paul, a really fantastic effort!”