Intrepid Sue's pledge to visit EVERY city in UK

Retired construction manager Sue Wood, 50, has pledged to visit all 69 cities in the UK, and for each one visited will donate £50 to the Blue Skies Hospitals Fund, which supported her care when she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year.

Now almost fully-recovered, she hopes to raise more than £3,500 in her journey of self-discovery.

Sue, who lives on Denmark Road in Ansdell, said: “When I was diagnosed I saw it as a message to start looking after myself.

“This challenge is all about doing just that – this is like a therapy for me to get back into the world after all I have been through.”

“I wanted to do something that was meaningful for me, and I would not have been able to do something like this if it wasn’t for the support and care I received on the Breast Care Unit.”

Sue will embark on her three-year-long journey in July, starting in the nearby city of Preston, before heading off to Birmingham, Newcastle, and Chester.

She said: “I’ve got it all planned out. It’s a real adventure for me.I feel like I’ve been living on autopilot and I’m finally breaking out.

“My mum always lived her life to the full and when I talked about her at her funeral I said I wanted to live my life the way she had lived hers.

“It’s very much a personal journey.

I didn’t want to just hand over a donation - I wanted it to be something worthwhile doing.”

The Blue Skies Hospital Fund supports the care of patients at Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and aims to give everyone the chance to enjoy the blue skies of good health.

Rebecca Ferguson, Deputy Head of Fundraising, said: “Sue has come up with such a unique way of supporting Blue Skies Hospitals Fund, and we are looking forward to tracking her progress over the next two years.

“We are always delighted when people chose to support their NHS charity after overcoming illness and treatment, and we wish Sue all the very best in her adventure.”

Sue will be raising money for a Faxitron machine for the Breast Care Unit, which will allow surgeons to examine skin and tissue removed from the body in the operating theatre, reducing the waiting time between the operation and diagnosis.

Find out more online at www.bfwh.nhs.uk/blueskies/