A determined 99-year-old great-grandmother from Poole is celebrating her upcoming 100th birthday - by walking 500 steps every day during Lent to fundraise for families without water access.

Inspired by other phenomenal retirees, including Captain Tom Moore who captured the nation’s hearts with his walks for the NHS, Pat Bishop hopes her sponsored walks will make a difference to those around the world who are struggling during the global pandemic.

“I felt so awful inside when I thought about how badly people were suffering because they did not have clean water readily available,” Pat explained.

“I will be 100-years-old this March and people ask what I'd like for my birthday. At my age, I don't need anything, so I would be delighted if people could sponsor me as their gift.”

Pat, a founding member and retired Director of the Drama and Arts department at Bath University, currently lives with her daughter Mandy and son in law in Poole.

She says her childhood experience of being offered a home when her family were in need, motivated her charity work – and is one of the reasons why she is determined to complete the impressive challenge.

Pat said: “When my father lost his job, two very good family friends kindly offered to take us into their home. They did this immediately, and didn’t want anything in return for their generosity- they were just pleased to have us with them."

She added: "500 steps might not seem far, and a few years ago I would have signed up to do 10,000 steps a day. However, nowadays 500 steps will still be a challenge, particularly as the weather is rather chilly.”

Pat’s fundraiser is in aid of the international development charity, CAFOD, whose Lent campaign ‘Walk for Water’ is raising money to fight water poverty overseas – an issue which has become even more crucial during the recent pandemic.

A report by the World Health Organisation just months before the outbreak of COVID-19 found over half of the global population - 4.2 billion people - lacked safe sanitation services. This meant that during the pandemic, millions of families could not access running water or soap, which are vital in stopping the spread of coronavirus.

Pat is thrilled to have raised over £2,000 so far for the charity and hopes her challenge will raise both funds and awareness.

Inspired by Pat’s story, CAFOD’s local representative in Dorset, Simon Giarchi said: “It is clear Pat is ready to go the extra mile, quite literally, to end water poverty, and her determination really will help to transform lives.

“From everyone at CAFOD and the communities who we support, we would like to say a massive thank you.”

Sponsor Pat’s challenge: Pat Bishop is fundraising for The Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD) (justgiving.com)

Please see Pat's JustGiving page here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/pat-bishop2