Knauf manager goes to sea for children’s hospice

Paul Walton, business systems project manager at plasterboard manufacturer Knauf Drywall, has tackled a trans-Atlantic charity yacht race in aid of Demelza Hospice Care.

Walton raised a total of £4000 for the organisation, which looks after over 600 children with life-limiting illnesses and their families across Kent, East Sussex and South East London.

The boat Lancelot crossed the finishing line in St Lucia after setting sail from Gran Canaria 21 days earlier, covering a distance of 4000 miles. Walton, a novice sailor, had been asked to join the crew of eight sailing four hours on and four hours off 24/7, after taking part in a corporate sailing day.

Among the hairy moments were 40ft-high oncoming waves, the sail hitting the water three times in one day and Walton clinging to the side of the yacht by just the side wire as the boat ran into a storm.

Demelza is Knauf Drywall’s designated charity. It helps children and young people up to 19 years of age not expected to reach adulthood, and offers support to their families. Children’s hospices can differ significantly from adult hospices in that many of the conditions children and young people are suffering from are degenerative in nature and progress over many years.

This means that children’s hospices have the opportunity to offer children, young people and families the chance to build memories as a family unit, undertake a range of activities that are age and needs specific that they may not ordinarily be able to access.