A team of glazing industry leaders has raised more than £110,000 by completing a fundraising cycling challenge for the mental health awareness charity, We Mind and Kelly Matters (WM&KM). The team included John Hewitt, father of Kelly Hewitt who the charity is named after. John is a former chair of Glazerite UK Group.
The cycle ride across the USA – dubbed the ‘Loneliest Road’ – is the latest in a series of fundraising challenges taken on by ‘Kelly’s heroes’ to raise money for WM&KM while raising awareness of mental health. The US leg of the challenge kicked off in Newark, New Jersey, on 24 September and will cover 3,336 miles. The route includes crossing seven mountain ranges along Highway 50.
Before that, riders on the European leg cycled from Spain to the headquarters of the challenge’s main sponsors, Veka Group, in Germany. The European team faced extreme heat across the continent for the challenge, which also saw them climb 3924ft up Mont Ventoux, business representatives have said.
John was joined on the ‘Loneliest Road’ challenge by his daughter Amy, Glazerite’s James Westley, Balls 2 Marketing’s Sarah Ball, Listers’ Roy Frost, DoorCo’s Dan Sullivan, FCD’s Adrian Lewis and Mews Windows’ Peter Mew. The team aimed to complete the challenge in San Francisco on 10 October 2022, World Mental Health Day.
James Westley, Glazerite’s production manager, said: “This is definitely the biggest challenge I’ve ever taken on. I’m doing so in memory of Churton Wilson, 40, Nick Taylor, 36, Anthony Griffiths, 36, and of course my niece, Kelly Hewitt, 24.
“Our efforts are in the hope that those in need know that they can talk and seek help with no shame. If it means we can save just one life in the process it makes it all worth it.” Click here to make a charity donation.
