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08 October 2015

Skydive Vicar

Buckinghamshire vicar, David Williams, is among an intrepid group of fellow vicars, missionaries and Church Missionary Society (CMS) supporters preparing to throw themselves out of a speeding plane, in order to raise money for CMS, one of the UK’s oldest missionary agencies.

David Williams, who in March completed the Reading half marathon, has now taken up the challenge to raise money for CMS’s work in west Uganda among some of the most impoverished and marginalised people in the world. The skydive will take place this weekend, on 10 October, at Netheravon airfield, near Salisbury in Hampshire. 

Through the skydive, David hopes to raise £1,000, which will go directly to support midwife, Kate Quarrell, a CMS missionary, who will be flying out to Uganda,early in 2016 to get involved in a local maternity programme.

David, who is Team Rector at St Mary’s, Princes Risborough, is no stranger to adventure. His church, St Mary’s, has strong links with communities in northern Uganda and other parts of the world, and they have completed numerous fundraising initiatives to support hospitals, churches and orphanages in the area. Over the last few years David has run half marathons and taken part in several long distance walks in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. One of his church members climbed Kilimanjaro earlier this year, in order to raise money for those in need.

Explaining his motivation, he said: “As a Church of England vicar who has visited northern Uganda regularly for over ten years, I am aware of the great needs of those living near the borders of the Congo and South Sudan. If I can do anything to help, I will. Our church's vision is to 'Share the Love of Christ with All', and we are committed to living this out in ways that make a difference. I'm hoping my five minutes of madness can make a real difference to CMS’s pioneering work on the margins of society".

Founded in 1799 in the crucible of the anti-slavery movement, CMS has some 350 people currently serving through their mission programmes internationally, sharing Jesus and changing lives in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America.