Mutual magazine ed4 - Pages 6-7

Team Harpenden Building Society Great Big Walk for Herts 2024

Our colleagues Emma Brown, King Wan and Amanda Andrews dusted down their walking boots and took part in the Great Big Walk for Herts on the 28th September.

Our team were 3 out of 23 participants altogether and what started out to be a planned 13 mile route, soon ended up being a very tough 16 miles due to recent flooding in fields. A few detours were needed, luckily the weather on the day played its part as it was a beautiful sunny day.

Our team managed to complete the challenge and raised a total of £725 for Hertfordshire Mind Network.

The amount raised has been included in the grand total of £4,241 raised so far on behalf of the entire day’s 23 participants. All these funds will go towards a great cause helping so many children currently experiencing mental ill health in Hertfordshire.

Hertfordshire Mind Network work across Hertfordshire to support positive mental health and wellbeing. They provide a diverse range of services from their eight Wellbeing Centres and other venues across the county.

Funded locally, their services are available to all residents in Hertfordshire aged 18+ and they offer dedicated services for 5-18 year-olds.

Their aim is to make sure that no-one has to face a mental health problem alone.

They are a local ‘Mind’, affiliated to national Mind, the leading mental health charity in England and Wales, and also Harpenden Building Society’s chosen charity of the year for 2024. This means they are an independent charity responsible for raising their own funds through contracts, grants and fundraising.

Scan the QR code to see more about the fantastic day our colleagues experienced

Thames Bridge Walk for Mind

On the 14th of September 2024 Isabel Hare and Estelle Head from our Leighton Buzzard branch took part in the Thames Bridge Trek 10K in aid of our chosen charity of the year, Mind, joining over 2000 participants. On the same day there was also a 25K walk which took in more of the sites of London.

The walk, which was 10.57km took place on a beautiful sunny day, starting at The Oval cricket ground. The walk took our team along both sides of the River Thames taking in sights such as Big Ben and the Tower of London, and it took approximately 2.5 hours to complete. As well as walking the South Bank in its entirety, the walk also took in the Millennium Bridge, Southwark Bridge, London Bridge and Tower Bridge, finishing at Southwark Park with a picnic lunch and a medal for everyone’s efforts.

With the generosity of our Harpenden colleagues, friends, and family, our team were able to raise an amazing £430 for Mind.

It was a great experience, and our team would highly recommend the event to everyone. For more info on this event and others like it, you can visit their website www.ultrachallenge.com.