One Man's Incredible Fundraising Mission

At Spinal Injuries Scotland we know how fortunate we are to have individuals and groups all over the country raising money to help the charity continue with its work. One man who has gone above and beyond over the last year is Captain Toby Oliver who serves in the 154 (Scottish) Regiment Royal Logistics Corps at Dunfermline.

I was lucky enough to catch up with Toby and talk about his gruelling campaign that has raised more than £1800 over the last year.

A colleague of Toby's sits on the board of directors of Spinal Injuries Scotland, so when Toby was looking for a charity to support everything fell into place seamlessly. After meeting with Maureen and Marianne who work for the charity Toby recognised the importance of our service and was determined to raise as much money and awareness as possible.

Not satisfied with pushing himself through one physically demanding challenge, Toby planned a series of events to complete. The list below describes each event and shows how dedicated Toby has been to help the charity.

• Scottish 2 Day Garelochhead Marches 2018 – a 2 day march covering 50 miles, carrying 10kgs, which I completed alongside a team of officers and soldiers from 154 Regt RLC

• Cateran Yomp 2018 – a 54 mile march to be completed in 24 hours or less in Blairgowrie, which I completed alongside several soldiers from 154 Regt RLC

• Nijmegen Marches 2018 – a 4 day march covering over 120km carrying 10kgs

• Tartan Warrior – a 5 mile obstacle course race in Alloa, in which I won my heat

• MacTuff Obstacle Course Race – a 15km obstacle race at Knockhill Racing Circuit, which acts as a qualifier for the Obstacle Course Race World Championships

• PARAS 10 – a 10 mile march carrying 36lbs over the Catterick Training Area, where UK Airborne forces undergo selection. I completed this event alongside my wife who ran the route

• Cateran Yomp 2019 – a 54 mile march to be completed in 24 hours or less in Blairgowrie, which I completed alongside a team of officers and soldiers from 154 Regt RLC

• Edinburgh Marathon Festival – my first ever full marathon, which I completed in 4 hours and 5 minutes – I already want to do another and run a sub-4 hour time

• Gin Tastings x 3 (Aug 18, May 19 and Jun 19) – numerous gin companies from across the UK kindly provided me with samples which we enjoyed across the Regiment, with all funds raised going towards Spinal Injuries Scotland. After sampling over 50 gins we now have a Regimental batch kindly created by Nerabus Gin, a Scottish company from the Isle of Islay.

Toby took time to pay special tribute to his wife. While all his friends, family and colleagues have been very supportive throughout his fundraising, his wife went the extra mile. She joined in fundraising and completed two of the events alongside Toby, the PARAS 10 and the Tartan Warrior.

Toby has plans to continue fund-raising and we wish him all the best in his future challenges. Everyone at Spinal Injuries Scotland is extremely grateful to Toby and those who have supported him through these events. It is thanks to people like Toby that we can continue to offer support to everyone in Scotland with a spinal injury. We all appreciate the selflessness and dedication shown by Toby and everyone else across the country who takes the time to help the charity through their own fundraising. We thank you all very much. If you are interested in fundraising then please keep us in mind and get in touch if you have any questions.