A SOLIHULL mum of three is stepping out on a 100km trek across the Scottish Highlands in aid of breast cancer charity Coppafeel!.
Kristie Harris is tackling the Rob Roy Way in memory of her sister in law who was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 23 and died just two years later.
On the trek, which starts on September 12, Kristie will be joined by author, actress and TV presenter Giovanna Fletcher a winner of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! TV presenter Emma Willis and a host of other incredible women, many of whom are breast cancer survivors.
Kristie left a corporate marketing career based in London to return home and launch a gift hamper business – Squidge Box – that actively supports charities, including Coppafeel!
She said: “Our ‘Come Fly with Gi’ team of 100 women from across the UK, who’ve all been impacted by breast cancer, will be camping, trekking and climbing for five days, tackling some of the most challenging sections of the Rob Roy way and climbing to the summit of one of Scotland’s highest mountains, Ben Lawers.”
And she admits she’s never faced a challenge quite as daunting as this one.
“I’ve climbed mountains before, Snowdon, Ben Nevis, but never seven in five days,” she said.
She’s feeling good though, her boots are broken in and the only major worry is Scotland’s notorious midges.
“My two youngest children, aged nine and 12, are really proud of what I’m about to do while my 18 year old is buzzing off to Manchester soon and doesn’t seem at all fussed!”
Kristie though will be stepping out with her sister-in-law Elizabeth in mind.
“I will be trekking in her honour and toasting her, and other ladies I know who have been taken too soon, from the top of the final summit,” she said.
Coppafeel! was founded in 2009 by Pride of Britain award winner, Kristin Hallenga and her twin sister Maren after Kristin was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer at the age of 23, the same age as Elizabeth.
The charity’s s mission is to make sure all breast cancers are diagnosed at the earliest stage possible, thereby improving survival rates, and to educate young people about the signs and symptoms of breast cancer.
For more information on Coppafeel! visit: www.coppafeel.org
To support Kristie’s trek – and she has a target of £2,250 to hit – visit: https://coppafeel.org/come-fly-with-gi-scottish-highlands/
