Senior vet takes part in 72-hour Snowdon endurance challenge to raise money for SARDA Wales
December 15, 2022
Kes Taylor, a Senior Vet from Cibyn Vet Clinic who was raising money for charity, set herself the challenge of ascending Snowdon as many times as possible within 72 hours.
It took many energy drinks, several ice baths and a few power naps to manage it 14 times, all in the name of raising money for the Search and Rescue Dog Association in Wales. The impressive endurance feat took place across the August Bank Holiday this year and led to over £4600 being raised.
As part of IVC Evidensia, her total was also topped up by the Community Grants Fund, which provided an additional £1000.
Therefore, she was keen to get as much raised as possible, so decided on ascending Snowdon as many times as she could across the bank holiday weekend.
The first ascent began at midnight on the 27th of August, and she managed thirteen more over the next three days, though admits if she had a better choice of footwear she could have completed more.
Kes went into more detail about her motivation during the challenge:
“From just a thought of ‘I might just potter up and down for the three days and see how many times I can do it’ to an astonishing amount of goodwill, support and donations, it was amazing and although I had a blast it was so, so tough!
“It was meant to be a small affair, traditionally SARDA have had their annual fundraiser on Snowdon supported by Snowdon Mountain Railway across Bank Holiday but with the summit building being closed and the difficulties surrounding COVID and people carrying little cash, we thought we would do something a little different.
“I really wanted to help raise the profile of SARDA (Wales) who are called out by North Wales Police around 70 days/year with the talented dogs who help save many lives by finding missing or vulnerable people in inhospitable terrain in North Wales.”
During the ascents, where she took several different routes either running or walking up the mountain, Kes was also joined by members of SARDA, several rescue dogs and fellow colleagues Tinka Vinks and Carys Beamish, who work with her at Cibyn Vet Clinic.
She was also assisted by a support team who helped provide food, drinks and the occasional ice bath.
As a vet for IVC Evidensia, Kes also benefitted from the Local Community Grants Fund, which is available for all veterinary groups. This can be used to make a donation to a local charity that is involved in animal welfare, or even a charity dedicated to helping the local community.
It gives teams across the group the opportunity to make a difference in their local community by applying for a grant to support a local cause they care about.
Sarah Heath, Director of Sustainability and ESG at IVC Evidensia, commented on this latest use of the fund:
“Our Local Community Grant Fund is a great way for clinic teams to support local charities, especially ones that focus on animal welfare, so I’m delighted that Kes has been able to use it to full effect and boost her fundraising for this excellent charity.
“We want to support the communities in which we operate – caring for pets, their owners, and also supporting our teams to play an active part in the wider community. So far, our Community Grants have helped hundreds of different charities in eight countries across Europe. The grants have been well received by our community partners, but have also been well received by our vets, who note the contribution to staff wellbeing from being supported to undertake this kind of community engagement.”
For more information about SARDA Wales, head over to their website here.
You can read more about other charities helped by the Community Grants Fund here.
It took many energy drinks, several ice baths and a few power naps to manage it 14 times, all in the name of raising money for the Search and Rescue Dog Association in Wales. The impressive endurance feat took place across the August Bank Holiday this year and led to over £4600 being raised.
As part of IVC Evidensia, her total was also topped up by the Community Grants Fund, which provided an additional £1000.
Bank Holiday Charity Challenge
Kes has been happily working with the team at Cibyn Vet Clinic for 9 years as an on-call vet, but from living in the area she joined both SARDA Wales and Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team, both of which are on-call organisations who volunteer 365 days a year. This includes frequent participation in rescues on Snowdon with the MR Team and Search and Rescue incidents with SARDA across North Wales.Therefore, she was keen to get as much raised as possible, so decided on ascending Snowdon as many times as she could across the bank holiday weekend.
The first ascent began at midnight on the 27th of August, and she managed thirteen more over the next three days, though admits if she had a better choice of footwear she could have completed more.
Kes went into more detail about her motivation during the challenge:
“From just a thought of ‘I might just potter up and down for the three days and see how many times I can do it’ to an astonishing amount of goodwill, support and donations, it was amazing and although I had a blast it was so, so tough!
“It was meant to be a small affair, traditionally SARDA have had their annual fundraiser on Snowdon supported by Snowdon Mountain Railway across Bank Holiday but with the summit building being closed and the difficulties surrounding COVID and people carrying little cash, we thought we would do something a little different.
“I really wanted to help raise the profile of SARDA (Wales) who are called out by North Wales Police around 70 days/year with the talented dogs who help save many lives by finding missing or vulnerable people in inhospitable terrain in North Wales.”
During the ascents, where she took several different routes either running or walking up the mountain, Kes was also joined by members of SARDA, several rescue dogs and fellow colleagues Tinka Vinks and Carys Beamish, who work with her at Cibyn Vet Clinic.
She was also assisted by a support team who helped provide food, drinks and the occasional ice bath.
Assisted by the Local Community Grants Fund
As a vet for IVC Evidensia, Kes also benefitted from the Local Community Grants Fund, which is available for all veterinary groups. This can be used to make a donation to a local charity that is involved in animal welfare, or even a charity dedicated to helping the local community.
It gives teams across the group the opportunity to make a difference in their local community by applying for a grant to support a local cause they care about.
Sarah Heath, Director of Sustainability and ESG at IVC Evidensia, commented on this latest use of the fund:
“Our Local Community Grant Fund is a great way for clinic teams to support local charities, especially ones that focus on animal welfare, so I’m delighted that Kes has been able to use it to full effect and boost her fundraising for this excellent charity.
“We want to support the communities in which we operate – caring for pets, their owners, and also supporting our teams to play an active part in the wider community. So far, our Community Grants have helped hundreds of different charities in eight countries across Europe. The grants have been well received by our community partners, but have also been well received by our vets, who note the contribution to staff wellbeing from being supported to undertake this kind of community engagement.”
For more information about SARDA Wales, head over to their website here.
You can read more about other charities helped by the Community Grants Fund here.
