89-year-old Grandma to tackle Portsmouth Spinnaker Tower in aid of Princess Alice Hospice

Daredevil Tam Thompson is preparing to tackle an abseil of Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth on Saturday, April 20, with her daughter and granddaughter in support of the Princess Alice Hospice, a hospice close to their hearts.

Tam is granddaughter of F. Glenister Woodger, who set up the F. Glenister Woodger Trust for the people of the Witterings by funding affordable housing, local sports club rebuilds and a complete overhaul of the Wittering Medical Centre, showing that selfless acts of kindness run throughout the family.

Tam, who has three children, seven grandchildren and six great grandchildren, will be the oldest person ever to do the abseil in support of Princess Alice Hospice.

The motivation for Tam, whose daily routine includes various sports and dog walks, is the memory of her husband of 66 years, Michael, who sadly passed in January.

Daughter Maxine Thompson who is also taking on the challenge, said: “Mum and Dad met when they were 13 and up until her 60s she was quite a typical Mum until she suddenly took off on an Outward Bound expedition to the Lake District and hasn’t looked back since.”

Maxine had already planned on completing an abseil for the Princess Alice Hospice after her husband, Mark, passed away in 2014 under the care and support of the hospice.The two brave women now await the challenging Easter weekend event when Maxine’s niece, Megan Stapely, will join alongside them.

Megan has previously taken leaps of faith for various charities through bungee jumps allowing her to raise impressive funds that will make a vital difference.

Similarly to Megan, Maxine has taken fundraising into her own hands with a 5k run, a charity music gig and hosting various cake sales in her area/

The courageous trio have since set up a Just Giving page, where they have called themselves ‘The Generation Girls’ in a bid to raise awareness of the hospice’s work and reach their combined fundraising target of £750.

Maxine added: “We are excited and nervous to do this abseil challenge but are keen to do something memorable to raise money for the hospice, to make a difference and take home some incredible memories.”

For further information on the work of the Princess Alice Hospice visit www.pah.org.uk or alternatively to donate to ‘The Generation Girls’ tower abseil visit their fundraising page on www.justgiving.com/fundraising/the-generation-girls-x-3.