Sarah Thompson, who leads St Clare Hospice, is swimming 26.2 miles—around 1,470 lengths—at her local lido this summer.
Her goal is to raise £1,600 for the hospice, which could cover the cost of running its community palliative care team for a day.
Ms Thompson said: “It’s been a couple of years since I have taken on a fundraising challenge for the hospice and so I felt it was time.
“While our NHS funding has remained steady at £2 million, the cost of delivering our services has risen significantly in recent years.
“As a result, the proportion of our income that comes from the NHS has dropped – from around 40 per cent to closer to 25 per cent.
“This means we now rely more than ever on the generosity of our local community.
“It’s thanks to people who believe in what we do that we’re able to keep our services running.
“I’m committed to supporting our fundraising efforts and being an active part of that side of hospice life.”
A swim marathon felt like the right challenge, she said.
“I have always enjoyed swimming, although I am not a fast swimmer.
“I thought a swim marathon would be enough of a challenge whilst enjoying the outdoors and fresh air during the summer and forcing me to get up and away from my desk.”
So far, she said she has received strong support from the community.
“The highlight has been the extraordinary support from hospice colleagues who’ve been asking how it’s going, and from lots of friends and people I’ve worked with in the past who’ve so generously sponsored me.
“I think they’re amazed I’m taking this on, as I’m not known for my physical fitness.”
She said she has been having a mixed time during training, with bad days where she “dreads” getting in the pool.
She added: “When the weather has been really hot, it’s been difficult to get into a rhythm because everyone (quite rightly) wants to float about at the end of the pool meaning it’s been hard at times to swim full lengths.
“I’m so worried about that, so I swim a bit extra to make sure I’ve got the full distance in.”
As of July 29, Ms Thompson had raised around £1,675.
She is encouraging others to take on their own swim challenges in support of St Clare Hospice.
The hospice still has limited charity places available for the London Marathon’s Swim Serpentine event in September.
To donate, visit justgiving.com/page/sarah-thompson-4.
