St Austell octogenarian to take on 15,000ft skydive for Cornish charities
David Earl is celebrating his 80th birthday by jumping out of a plane for ShelterBox and the Cornwall Air Ambulance
Last updated 23rd May 2023
A Cornish man is celebrating his 80th birthday... by jumping out of an aeroplane!
David Earl, who's from St Austell, will be taking on a 15,000 foot skydive for the Cornwall-based charity, ShelterBox, which helps with crucial disaster relief efforts all around the world.
David's no stranger to heights, though, having spent 27 years in the RAF as a pilot before going on to fly commercially.
When the former Wing Commander came back to Cornwall, he worked as a flying instructor at Bodmin and Perranporth airports.
He now volunteers for ShelterBox and the Cornwall Air Ambulance - and is on a mission to raise as much money as he can for both charities with a tandem skydive on June 2nd at Perranporth Airfield.
He said: “After 63 years flying as a pilot and now entering my ninth decade, it strikes me that it is high time I let others take the strain while I just admire the scenery.
“Clearly the scale of ShelterBox’s activities demands very significant investment, and therefore fundraising and making people aware of the ever-increasing need of suffering people all over the world is critical to its continued success. My aim is to do what I can to help.
“Some years ago, I joined Rotary and became aware of ShelterBox.
“It impressed me that here was a Cornish charity start-up, which had become so significant globally.
“When I was younger the idea of working ‘on the frontline’ would have appealed. However, I am too old for that now, so last year when I was looking for a volunteer role, I contacted ShelterBox and was encouraged to become an ambassador doing talks to local clubs.”
ShelterBox was founded by the Rotary Club of Helston-Lizard in 2000.
Since then, it has supported more than 2.5 million people across 98 countries through the provision of emergency shelter aid as well as giving help to people who have had to leave their homes, or whose homes have been damaged or destroyed, because of conflict or extreme weather events.
Community Fundraising Officer for ShelterBox, Louisa Arnold said: “It’s not the first daring fundraising challenge David has completed to raise money for charities close to his heart.
“David has a great sense of adventure and having completed a charity wing walk a few years ago, he’s now all set to mark his 80th birthday by jumping out of an aeroplane.
“David is a wonderful volunteer and it’s people like him who help raise awareness and fund our much-needed work across the world.
“Every year more than 100 million people have to leave behind their homes because of conflict or disaster. We want to change that. By providing emergency shelter and other essential items, we give people a starting point.”
ShelterBox is currently helping people displaced by extreme weather events like the monsoon flooding in Pakistan and the worst drought to hit East Africa in 40 years.
It’s also supporting people affected by the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria, and who have had to flee their homes, or had them damaged, because of conflict.
Currently, ShelterBox is working in Ukraine, Yemen, Syria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, and Mozambique.
David hopes to raise £3,000 for charity and has set up a fundraising page - which you can check out here.
To find out more about ShelterBox, and what you could do to help, visit their website.
You can learn more about the Cornwall Air Ambulance on their website.