WINDERMERE School pupil Anna Broomby completed a ten peak challenge to help children born with cleft lips and palates.
Anna, 17, was herself born with a cleft palate, which was repaired when she was just one year old.
Her mum, Alison, told the Gazette that, with the milestone of her 18th birthday approaching on Saturday, Anna wanted to give something back by helping youngsters in countries where the surgery is not readily available.
Anna spent the summer climbing 21 Wainwrights during her training for the Borrowdale Ten Peak Challenge, a long walk around the Borrowdale Valley.
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She enjoyed perfect weather for the trek, which she completed with her mum and dad Andrew, setting foot on the summit of Glaramara ten hours after they started the walk in Seathwaite village.
The challenge also saw them climb Base Brown, Green Gable, Great Gable, Lingmell, Scafell Pike, Broad Crag, Ill Crag, Great End and Allen Crags. Anna’s brother Harry, 14, was waiting to greet them with cakes and cups of tea when they arrived home.
So far, Anna has raised more than £1,000 for medical charity Operation Smile, which provides free surgery to repair cleft lips and palates for children around the globe. The life-changing surgery costs from £150 and can take as little as 45 minutes.
One child in 700 is born with a cleft – a gap or split in the upper lip or roof of the mouth, or sometimes both. It happens when separate areas of the face do not join together properly when a baby develops during pregnancy, and the exact cause is unknown.
Anna was born at Helme Chase Maternity Unit and had her surgery in Preston. Her mum described it as a traumatic and emotional time, but said that Anna was determined the charity walk should not be about her, but about giving back to other children.
To donate, visit www.justgiving.com/anna-broomby-smile/
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