Darren Bullows
A daredevil father-of-two raised £3,195 for Primrose Hospice with a ‘crazy’ Wing Walk in memory of his father-in-law.
Darren Bullows, from Bromsgrove, wanted to give back to the hospice which supported his father-in-law Sean after he was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2016.
Sadly, Sean died on October 4 2018 and the hospice continued to offer support to all of the family including his little brother-in-law Archie and niece Heidi.
Mr Bullows, a workshop controller at Trust Group Redditch – Volkswagen and Skoda, said he didn’t hesitate when he saw the charity was offering wing walks.
“Most would say it was a crazy decision for me so I signed up straight away.
“I was hoping to do something a little daring and worthwhile but at the same time giving something back to the charity and hopefully making Sean proud.
“Not only was it a way of helping others by raising money for Primrose, it became a way of saying thank you to the charity on behalf of Sean, myself and the family.”
The 38-year-old’s wing walk became the hot topic of conversation at work and with friends and family with many calling him ‘mad’ for being strapped to the wings of a plane while it is in flight.
While Mr Bullows was calm in the run up to the wing walk, his nerves did kick in on the day.
“The wing walk was difficult to prepare for so I had been telling myself it would be like going on a rollercoaster at a theme park.
“Once we arrived with the Aerobatics team I was nervous but had the opportunity to see a few flights before mine which was great.
“Soon the nerves were taken over by adrenalin which actually helped.
“As soon as the plane fires up and you hear the noise it is amazing.
“I was smiling and feeling a buzz throughout.”
Sarah Harris, community fundraiser at Primrose, thanked Mr Bullows for taking on the challenge and raising such a huge amount for Primrose.
She said: “Darren’s family have experienced first-hand the care and support we offer people with life-limiting conditions and their families here at Primrose.
“Thanks to his bravery and his friends’ and families’ generosity, he has helped to ensure we can continue to support other families unfortunately going through the same thing.
“This care is provided free of charge to those who need us but we must raise £1.75million annually to pay for these services.
“It is the first year we have run wing walks and we are so pleased that they have proved so popular.”
Anyone wishing to take on a wingwalk for Primrose should contact Sarah on 01527 889796 or via email: [email protected].
