On Sunday 28 July, the cutting crew from Levi’s Barbers in Beeston leapt from a ‘Grand Caravan’ plane at 14,000 feet to take on not only their first-ever fundraiser for Forever Stars but also their first-ever skydive.
Levi Bradley (age 30), Callum Tighe (27) and Omar Baird (22) were joined by Ben Wright (age 28) of Skinvasion, a premier tattoo studio in Toton, and Ella Peck (27), Joab Bryan (28) and Abi Hallam, who celebrated her 28th birthday on the day of the skydive.
All monies raised from the skydive will go directly to Forever Stars’ ‘Supporting 1 on 4 for 2024′ Campaign and to date the skydive has raised over £2,700. Designed to focus on the one in four pregnancies that end in miscarriage every day, Forever Stars is looking to raise £50,000 from the campaign. The monies will be used to completely redesign and refit the Ward A23 garden at Nottingham’s Queen’s Medical Centre (QMC) hospital, to turn it into a comforting space for patients and their families to escape to when dealing with the heartbreak of miscarriage and baby loss.
Co-founder of Forever Stars, Richard Daniels, explains: “What started out as a casual conversation about Levi and the team wanting to do a skydive, very quickly moved to a confirmed event with seven skydivers jumping out of the plane for Forever Stars!
“I think it’s great that a barbers is getting involved with the charity, because it is opening up a dialogue with men about baby loss, an area the charity is really focused on; we know that men don’t talk enough about their feelings and emotions, and that the devasting impact baby loss can have a huge impact on a person’s mental health.
“The team at Forever Stars can’t thank Levi’s Barbers, their friends and supporters enough for their commitment and promotion of this skydive,” he adds. “This high-flying fundraising event will make a real difference to our Supporting 1 in 4 in 2024 campaign for A23 at the Queen’s Medical Centre.”
Levi’s Barbers’ Callum Tighe adds: “The skydive for Forever Stars was our first official fundraising event and whilst we were a little nervous about it, it’s great to do what we can for Richard and the charity, and helping support their amazing work and support.
“Before the jump, we looked into what the skydive entailed – we knew that the plane will take about 20 minutes to reach the required 14,000 feet, and once we’d jumped, we would freefall for around 60 seconds, reaching 60mph in just 2.7 seconds, and 125mph in less than five seconds! After opening the parachute, we would glide to the ground in around seven minutes – where we were met by family and friends who were there supporting us on solid ground!”
There is still chance to show your support to Levi, Callum, Omar, Ben, Abi, Ella, and Joab in their skydive for Forever Stars, please visit their JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/page/levi-barbers-skydive