Stamford woman take part in 'walk for water' to buy a well for a Kenyan community

A fundraising challenge has helped a Stamford woman find her feet after a lifetime of mobility issues.

Judith Wade, 78, was born with a dislocated left hip which made walking a difficulty throughout her life.

She set up and ran the Happy Days childcare centre in Queen Street but struggled walking from there to her home, which was on the same road.

“If I got there and had left something at home it reduced me to tears,” said Judith.

About 30 years ago she began treatment and after four operations she was able to walk comfortably.

“Walking is not my forte. I would walk in my daily life but going for walks is never something I found easy,” said Judith. “My limp was very pronounced, and it got worse as I got older. Some people do not recognise me and say ‘you are walking so well, what have they done to you’.”

Now Judith is completing between 4,000 and 8,000 steps a day as part of a Walking for Water challenge.

Started by Stamford man George Hetherington, the challenge aims for a small group of people to walk to Osupukiai in Kenya from Stamford, a distance of 4,228 miles. The goal is to fund the construction of a well for the Maasai people of Osupukiai, providing the community with a supply of clean water.

Judith said: “I’ve been to Kenya and know the situation. I’ve seen the children carrying water on their heads in very hot weather - further than I’m walking. The well is a really good thing to be raising money for.”

She added: “Now I enjoy getting up in the mornings and setting off at 6.30am to do something that is helping others as well as building up my leg muscles and making me stronger.”

The group, which includes George and his wife, Jan, and friend Tim Brabbs, has completed more than three-and-a-half million steps, which equates to walking to Benghazi in Libya.

Putting a spring in her step are Judith’s ‘magic’ new shoes, which she had fitted at a specialist running shop.

“I wake up ready to walk every morning and, when I put on my ‘magic shoes’, I’m off!” she said.

Judith, who knows George through Barn Hill Methodist Church, uses her walks as an opportunity for prayer and meditation.

She said: “It’s a time away from phones and everybody. I have quite a lot of friends who are unwell and struggling in life so it’s nice to pray for them in that quiet space.”

More than £2,500 of the £20,000 cost of the well has been raised on a GoFundMe page.