AN ANIMAL loving Pershore teenager will put his best foot forward for a gruelling eight day, 200 mile trek across the breadth of Scotland to raise funds for the Blue Cross.
Ben Atkin, 14, who volunteers at the charity’s High Street shop in Pershore, will be walking the equivalent of a marathon everyday when he begins the challenge on Saturday.
The 14-year-old will be joined by his father Ian for trek which will see them walk across Scotland from Portpatrick on the west coast to Cockburnspath on the east coast.
A total of 212 miles, the walk will scale the equivalent of 10 mountains and cover 20 to 30 miles each day.
The kind-hearted teenager has been volunteering for Blue Cross for about a year. He helps with sorting out donated stock, filling shelves and checking DVDs and computer games for damage before they go on sale at their Pershore shop. He even steps in to wear heavy pet mascot costumes on shop open days.
Although he has already beaten his £400 target, the passionate animal lover is now hoping to raise as much money as possible for the thousands of homeless, abandoned, sick and injured pets cared for by Blue Cross each year.
Ian said: “Ben has always loved animals and just wants to do whatever he possibly can to help pets in need. It has actually been a bit of a problem during our training as whenever we bump into an animal of any species he has to stop and say hello.”
Liz Martin, Assistant Manager at the Blue Cross Pershore Shop, said: “We are all just so proud of Ben. He is a dedicated and enthusiastic volunteer in the shop, always willing to help out and a valued member of the team.
“We hope animal lovers get behind him and show their support by donating to this brave challenge.”
Visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ben-atkin1 to donate to Ben’s challenge.
