Press Release - 15th August 2005
WELL
DONE HUBERT - OUR 90 YEAR OLD PARACHUTING STAR!
Hubert Irwin - In The Air Well done to Hubert Irwin - a cancer patient who took the
leap of his life on Saturday when he jumped 10,000 feet
from a plane to raise money for The Christie -
aged an amazing 90 years old!
Hubert Irwin, from Swinton in Salford, is in remission
from cancer but was determined to make the daredevil jump
to help others battle the disease.
Last year, he had a cancerous growth between his eyes removed
at Christie's, Europe's largest specialist cancer treatment
and research centre. And ever since he has been planning
a way to raise money to help others.
There was high drama on the jump day with a ten-hour wait
for driving wind and rain and wind to calm down enough
to allow the aircraft he would jump from to get to the
altitude required.
"
The instructors and staff were excellent," said Hubert. "We
were in the car about to go home when they dashed over
to say we had just enough time to try the jump.
"I ran across the field to get kitted-up and tried to keep my nerves. It
was a tandem jump and fortunately I remembered the instructions on the way down."
Dozens of people complete parachute jumps to raise money for Christie's every
year - but Hubert is by far the oldest ever. Before he was given permission,
the sprightly pensioner had to get the all clear from his GP that he was fit
to take part.
Christie Appeals Director Toni Leden said: "We're amazingly proud of Hubert.
A parachute jump is terrifying at the best of times, but to consider it at his
age when he is recovering from cancer is astounding. When he first approached
us, our main concern was of course his health as we would never want our fundraisers
to do anything they were not capable of. But he is a very determined chap, and
once he was given permission by his doctor, we knew there would be no stopping
him.
Christie's would also like to thank the staff of North-west Parachute Association
at Flookburgh, including instructor Mike Gruthers, who did everything they could
to make sure Hubert's day was as memorable as possible.
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The Christie in Manchester is one of the leading cancer centres in Europe - registering around 12,500 new patients and treating about 40,000 patients every year.
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