Suffolk Sky Dive Raises £2,000 for Halesworth Charity

Thursday, 15 January 2026 16:00

Ricky Hardy with Karen Kerridge, Director of Halesworth Volunteers. Image by Jez Donaldson.

A member of Halesworth Men's Shed has raised over £2,000 for local charity Halesworth Volunteers by leaping out of a plane at 13,000 feet, over the Suffolk countryside.

Ricky Hardy of Halesworth in Suffolk raised the funds with help from local residents and businesses. Halesworth Men's Shed will contribute £400 towards the total.

The amount raised is more than double the £1,000 target originally set for the event.

Ricky is a member of both Halesworth Men's Shed, where he helps with furniture repairs, and Halesworth Volunteers, where he helps members of the local community with various tasks they're no longer able to do themselves, such as dog walking.

Karen Kerridge, Director at Halesworth Volunteers, talked of how the skydive has helped Halesworth Volunteers: "It's been brilliant," she said, "local businesses have been supportive...it's helped to raise awareness...and we're very grateful to Ricky for being brave enough to do it"

All the funds raised will support the projects that Halesworth Volunteers do in the local area.

There is a dramatic video available of the skydive, showing Ricky hurtling towards the ground at 120MPH, the wind pressing his cheeks into his face. This is available on the Halesworth Men's Shed website, along with an audio interview of Karen and Ricky, after the event.

Of the skydive, Ricky said he wasn't afraid until the moment before he jumped, and would do it again. "I had to crawl along on my bum, to get to the door," he said, "there's no room to stand up".

The JustGiving page is still open for more donations. Donors can find it by searching for Halesworth Volunteers on JustGiving, where they will find Ricky's "Falling for Funds" page. Donations are also accepted at the offices of Halesworth Volunteers, which are at the Patrick Stead Day Centre, near the Rifle Hall.

The Volunteers Centre, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, is keen to recruit new volunteers. They can be contacted on 01986 875600 or by email at info@halesworthvolunteers.org. Halesworth Men's Shed can be contacted on 01986 835905 or by email at shedhalesworth@gmail.com.

Article by Jez Donaldson