Two mothers braved scorching conditions to walk two marathons in two days.
Anna Jefferson and Fiona Gambie, both 44 and from Brighton, completed over 54 miles across the Sahara Desert.
“The walk was both incredible and gruelling in equal measure. It was, at times, 37 degrees and long stretches of walking across arid land,” said Anna, who lives in Fiveways.
“I am not a naturally sporty person, but when Fiona suggested the challenge and the charity I thought, let’s give it a go.”
The pair took on the challenge last week to raise money for Sibs, charity representing the needs of siblings of disabled people.
Fiona is a mum-of-three and one of her sons is disabled. She said: “It is incredibly challenging having a disabled child. The future is uncertain, and to be quite frank, it can be a scary and lonely place to be.
“But it’s not just the parents that face struggles. As the sibling of a disabled child, they will face their own set of struggles, anxieties and fears.”
The duo raised over £4,500 for Sibs, more than doubling their £2,000 target.
Fiona’s children receive support from the charity at school, and she hopes this will be rolled out in more schools in Sussex.
“My children attend one of the only schools in Sussex where Sibs operates and I wanted to be able to give something back,” she said.
Fiona described the support they receive as “invaluable”.
She said: “Every week they get to spend an hour with other pupils who have disabled siblings. This gives them the opportunity to know they are not alone and to talk about their feelings and frustrations.”
Anna and Fiona began their training at the start of this year. They took on 5.30am walks before the school run, before practising longer walks during the summer heatwaves to acclimatise for their desert challenge.
They both said they were “overwhelmed” by the support they received.
“At the moments when we were both exhausted, we just kept remembering all those who have believed in us and put one foot in front of the other until we reached the finish line,” said Anna.
Their fundraiser is still open and those wishing to donate can do so at: https://tinyurl.com/desertwalking.
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