Last month Vistair had the privilege of being joined (virtually) by Max Woosey and his mother Rachael Woosey, who shared their incredible story of determination and resilience.
11-year-old, Max Woosey from Braunton has been sleeping in a tent outside his home for more than 200 days and raised over £90,000 for the North Devon Hospice.
The tent was given by Max’s 64-year-old friend and neighbour Rick before he passed away. Rick had told Max to have an adventure with the tent and hence he came up with the idea of raising money for charity in his memory.
The young camper sleeps in the tent every night, but goes inside his house to have dinner, to wash and for home-schooling. “I love the outdoors, it's amazing,” he said.
With an initial target of raising £100, Max explained that can’t believe how much he’s raised so far: “It feels amazing, it's unbelievable really. It will be used for equipment and stuff like that to help other people and people who really need it."
Resilience and Determination
With plans to do a whole year in his tent, Max will face his biggest challenge yet this winter. “It's fun but very hard, the weather, the wildlife, they prove a massive challenge."
Now on his fifth tent, Max had to trade up after the canvas on Rick's lost its waterproof coating. “He'll get through a few more yet,” said Rachael, who explained that the tents only last around 10 weeks when in constant use. “It's absolutely incredible, it's bonkers,” she said of her son’s outdoor challenge.
The lessons Max and his family have learnt along the way resonated with the Vistair Team especially when they talked about resilience and determination. Vistair understands that perception in business are often like normal everyday perceptions and there is often a requirement to be both disruptive and brave, especially when it comes to undertaking projects that seem different.
Rachael comments “Seeing the sponsorship come in gives him a real boost. He knows how important the hospice was for us when caring for Rick, so he knows he is helping other families who might need that same support now. His resilience is really impressive.
Positivity and Charisma
Max’s positivity and charisma was apparent throughout the call, as he explained the best part of sleeping outside was "escaping" parents and getting to "read the Beano for as long as you want".
Rob Morgan, CFO / COO, commented: “It is great to see Max’s passion for helping others and his endeavor to make a real difference to all those people who the hospice is caring for right now. He should be very proud of his achievements to date and it is a great inspiration for all of us to see the hugely positive impact of his support of others.”
Since reaching the 200-day mark, Max has set himself a new goal to camp outside for an entire year.
To donate to Max’s camp out for North Devon Hospice, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/max-woosey1
