Stoke Volunteer Fire Brigade successfully raised more than $7000 by pushing their bodies to the limit for the annual Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge last month.
The challenge sees hundreds of firefighters from around the country don their gear and hike the 51 flights of stairs to reach the top of the Sky Tower to fundraise for Leukaemia and Blood Cancer New Zealand.
This year the challenge has raised more than $1.5 million collectively for the charity, which helps support families going through cancer, and funds research into blood cancers.
Stoke team leader Jamie Foskett says the event is the largest single fundraiser for the charity, and the team are proud to support it.
“Its such a great cause and it’s so well supported and embraced by the firefighting community.”
He says it’s also a good day out, providing the opportunity to catch up with firefighting friends from around the country.
The team of six put in the effort in the lead up to the event in Auckland on 20 May, but even hiking the Tamaki Steps repeatedly can’t quite prepare them for the challenge.
“Tamaki is the biggest stair climb you can do around here, but you still have to complete it 3.5 times to be the equivalent of the Sky Tower,” Jamie says.
Jamie and a couple of others were also training in combat challenge, something he describes as 'crossfit on steroids', which he says helped.
On the day, he says it’s a different pace for everyone.
“You see some people that are really fit and they just fly up there, like Murray from the airport team, then a lot of us just make our way up there and get the job done,” he says.
“There are a few people that don’t do a great deal of training for it, just isn’t their cup of tea, or it’s their first time and you see a few of those people keeled over not doing so well at the top.”
He says everyone from the Stoke team reached the top and finished, which was the main achievement aside from the fundraising.
“But I think most of us beat our previous time which is also positive.”
Every day eight people in New Zealand are diagnosed with a blood cancer or associated blood condition and Jamie says the Stoke community really jumped on board to help with their fundraising efforts.
“The local supermarkets, Scott Construction, South Pine who always donate a trailer load of wood for us to auction off, there’s so many local businesses that support us.”
As for next year, Jamie says he’s keen to return to climb the tower again.
“A few of us are keen to go back and do it again, some want to let some of the new people come through, we’ve got some new blood coming into the brigade so I think a few of the youngsters are keen to get involved,” he says.
“Some of us are happy to carry on for a bit longer but some are definitely happy to have rest,” he jokes.
If anyone’s interested in joining the brigade, reach out to the team.
