One of the most stimulating aspects of my job is the potential for the unexpected. Sitting at my desk in Sedgefield late one Monday afternoon, I was expecting to be in the same place the following morning. However, a couple of conversations later and I was planning an early jaunt over to the Lake District instead.
This was all because of a remarkable young boy called Tony Hudgell, who was planning to climb his first fell, the seemingly modest Orrest Head near Windermere. While it might not be a big peak or challenge to most, eight-year-old Tony lost both of his legs by amputation as a baby after horrific abuse by his birth parents. He captured the hearts of millions when just five, after walking 10k to raise funds for charity, and had now set his sights on completing his first Lakeland fell, with the help of his adoptive parents Mark and Paula, and a team of supporters, all led and coordinated by mountain guide Steve Watts.
The only reason I had any involvement was due to the fact that mountaineering icon Sir Chris Bonington had sent a message of support to Tony and had agreed to join him for the climb. As well as being a Berghaus ambassador, Sir Chris is a patron of one of the charities that Tony was fundraising for, Bendrigg Trust. I was asked to help spread the word about that aspect, and as a result, ITN responded and asked if they could tag along. I knew that there would be other media there and that the event organisers would have their hands very full already, so it seemed like the sensible move to pop over and try to help out, without getting in the way!
I’m so glad that I did, not because there would have been chaos without me there (far from it – the whole event was very well organised), but because a) it was a huge privilege to witness Tony reaching the summit, b) I got to catch up with old friends like Sir Chris and Alan Hinkes, along with colleagues from the media such as Fiona Marley Paterson ITV Border, and c) I was outside and on a hill with wonderful views.
Thanks to the marvels of modern technology, I was also able to update Berghaus on progress live from the summit of Orrest Head, joining a scheduled Teams catch up with the marketing team while Tony was the centre of attention behind me. What an office for the morning!
Tony is raising money for four charities (the Tony Hudgell Foundation, Bendrigg Trust, Crohn’s & Colitis UK and The Lake District Foundation) and you can still donate at https://donate.giveasyoulive.com/fundraising/gotonygo?fbclid=IwAR3sPe3QSAGT-4nzaWTdd4kxcd4ED-V9-qImom17WiI2ZzJZeJYreb0evQY.
And ‘Summit’s Up For Tony’ generated loads of great media coverage, including excellent reports on the ITV Evening News (https://www.itv.com/watch/news/boy-who-lost-his-legs-after-abuse-climbs-lake-district-mountain-for-charity/h6kdf3b), ITV Border (https://www.itv.com/news/border/2023-08-08/eight-year-old-boy-climbs-lakeland-fell-and-raises-nearly-2million-for-charity) and BBC platforms (e.g. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjlw37dnyrgo), and much more.
While plenty of others have contributed, all of that is really down to the efforts and energy of one amazing and very able eight-year-old boy. #GoTonyGo.
> Chris.
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