Across the month of February, Tony James has been swimming laps at Broken Hill Regional Aquatic Centre as part of the Cancer Council’s ‘Swim For Cancer Challenge’. Setting a target of 16km, the 75-year-old completed the final stretch on Sunday having swam 2km each Saturday and Sunday, and raising somewhere around $1200 along the way for a worthy cause.
“I like swimming, it’s great, it’s good exercise for me. It felt pretty good that I completed it,” Mr James told the Barrier Truth.
“I’m well into my 70s so I went on and it was the last lap on Sunday. It felt good to finish it. It’ll feel a bit better when I collect all the donations and send them down through the donation page to the Cancer Council.”
After losing his sister to cancer, while also having a brother diagnosed with cancer, the retired railway worker who is a member of the Rotary Club of Broken Hill and volunteers his time at the Lifeline Tip-Shop repairing furniture and converting beds to sofas, said he’s passionate about raising awareness around cancer and wanted to raise as much money as he could.
With the Rotary Club of Broken Hill and the Musician’s Club each providing $500 donations, he says the generosity of people in the community donating their spare change had helped him raise much-needed funds to support people affected by cancer.
“I had some donation jars at the swimming pool and a couple out at Lifeline, one at the commercial shop and one inside where everyone volunteers. That all most probably gets us up around about $1200 that I’ve raised,” he said.
