INSPIRING Bromsgrove youngster Riley Sharratt is taking the plunge in memory of his sister Libby Mae by spending his holiday in Spain braving a sponsored swim in his villa pool.
Riley is raising the cash for Libby Mae’s Little Angels, a charity formed in 2013 by his parents Richard and Charlotte who lost their daughter at just two weeks old.
The eight year old is swimming 5.5miles, the same distance Libby Mae travelled from Birmingham Women’s Hospital, where she was born, to the city’s children’s hospital, where she was transferred to after scans revealed she had a heart condition.
Sports lover Riley attended a charity meeting with a corporate sponsor and heard their intentions to take on the three peaks next year.
When he was told he was too young to take on the three peaks , Riley came up with his own fundraising idea.
He has currently swam three miles in his holiday pool and raised £800, smashing his £500 target.
Libby Mae would’ve turned ten on April 26.
The charity in her name was set up by her parents Charlotte and Richard, and together with volunteers and patrons they have raised cash for and provided the medical equipment needed to look after babies on neonatal units across the Midlands.
Riley has previously done other charity fundraisers in memory of his sister, including a sponsored bike ride where he rode 26miles in a month.
He’s also done a sponsored walk of his close in Catshill, gets involved at carnivals and fetes and loves helping at Libby Mae’s Little Angels bucket collections in local supermarkets.
Riley said, since he couldn’t buy Libby Mae a present or go to her party, he instead wanted to raise some money in her memory.
His mum Charlotte added: “Both myself and Richard are incredibly proud of our boy.
“Libby was born before Riley but we’ve always talked about her and Riley is so proud to talk about his sister.”
Visit www.justgiving.com/page/r-sharratt-1691424971385? to donate to Riley.
