Teesside lecturer completes UK charity drive

One of our academics has driven the length of the country in a car he built himself to help raise funds for a charity close to his heart.

Dr Steve Bloomer has driven from Land’s End to John O’Groats and back home to Washington, Tyne and Wear, in aid of the Healing Hands North charity, which is working to rebuild communities in Kashmir left devastated by the 2005 earthquake.

Dr Bloomer, Principal Lecturer and Subject Group Leader in Construction and Environment, has an international reputation as an expert in ground stability and disaster management. He first travelled to Kashmir following the 2005 to help work on post-earthquake relief measures.

Trained people in construction skills He said: 'I was last there about two years ago. We’d trained about 50 people in construction skills and it was great to see how they had progressed. One man is now a site manager, while another had set up his own building business. This type of long-term help is vital work.'

Dr Bloomer drove on his fundraising journey in a stainless steel kit car, built from other car parts. Travelling in the vehicle was his 17-year-old son Tim.

He said: 'I wanted to do something to raise awareness of the continuing needs of the people of Kashmir and to help raise funds.

'I bought the kit car about six years ago as part of a part-finished project and immediately took it to bits. Every year I do work on it, although it has been off the road for most of the past year.

'The car is just three inches off the ground and has no heating or radio and is a bit uncomfortable, so it was interesting journey! We drove 2,005 miles and had rain for 1,500 of them! The rain came into the car a lot, onto the dashboard and down our legs. The last day was good though, we drove for 11 hours solid from Inverness to John O’Groats. We were originally going to stop in Avemore but decided to keep on going.'

Anyone wanting to still sponsor Dr Bloomer can call in at HSBC Bank, Stockton High Street or make a donation direct to the Healing Hands North charity by quoting Account Number 404311 and Sort Code 404311.

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