Fundraising for your local hospital doesn’t have to be just cake sales and raffle tickets – just ask Beth Slattery.
When the thirst for adventure hit her, Beth signed up to take part in the fundraising challenge of a lifetime in Africa. It would prove life changing in more ways than one.
On a ten day trek in Morocco from M’Hamid El Ghizlane to Marrakech to raise money for our Jigsaw Building, Beth made friends with fellow fundraiser Ryan. By the time they arrived back in Bournemouth, the two hadn’t just enjoyed an unforgettable trip – they had become inseparable.
“We became close while on the Sahara Desert Trek back in 2012,” Beth says. “After ten days together in the desert camping under the stars, we fell in love.”
It was the beginning of a beautiful love story for the Slatterys. Beth and Ryan later married, celebrating the birth of their first child, Aimee, in 2016. And recently, their family has grown with the arrival of little baby Zac early this January.
It’s fitting that Beth and Ryan’s love would bloom while fundraising for a hospital that means a lot to both of their families.
“My mum’s a nurse in the Royal Bournemouth Hospital’s Derwent Building and Ryan’s mum is a health care assistant,” explains Beth. ”They’ve both been here 20 years so this hospital is a big part of their lives.”