MONTHS of training paid off for a group of Gwent fundraisers who took on Mount Kilimanjaro to raise almost £30,000 for the Argus-backed Sparkle Appeal.

Faith Husband, Martin Gerrard, Carl Winters, Caroline Bird, Katrin Pritchard, Leah Givvons, Sam O’Sullivan, Paul Jones, Alison Hazeldin, Ellen Gilbert, Gill Watkins and Ben Pritchard-Jones, set off to tackle Africa’s tallest mountain on June 30 and returned triumphant on July 11, having raised £29,000 for the charity.

The Sparkle Appeal aims to raise money to complete a purpose-built children’s centre at High Cross to cater for children with disabilities from across the area.

Ms Husband, Sparkle’s corporate and major donor fundraiser, said all the hard work leading up to the trek was worth it.

She said: “It’s the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. We got half way up and I thought ‘I can’t breathe’ and I didn’t think I could go on, but I just kept thinking one foot after the other.

“The team morale was really good. It was hard because sometimes you couldn’t see where you were going, but you could see the lights of other people above you and you knew it was just going straight up.”

The team has raised around £29,000 so far from trekking the 5,898 metre high mountain, but they are still waiting for fundraising money to come in and Ms Husband hopes they will break the £30,000 mark.

Anyone wishing to sponsor the team can do so by visiting www.sparkleappeal.co.uk * One of the easiest ways to support the Sparkle Appeal is to play the Sparkle Lottery. To enter the lottery contact the Sparkle Appeal on 01633 656212 or download a form from www.sparkleappeal.co.uk

Council says charge is fair

A Monday to Friday commuter who uses the service ten months out of the year will have to pay around £300 to park.

Return tickets from Newbridge to Cardiff Central start at £5.80 and an annual ticket is £952, so a commuter could see themselves forking out in excess of £1,200 annually to park at the station and catch the train to Cardiff.

A Caerphilly council spokesman said: "In the current financial climate we need to take tough decisions in order to protect budgets and at the moment, these park and ride sites generate no income. We feel the £1.50 charge for a full day parking is still good value for money."

Blaenau Gwent council has no plans to introduce charges at its railway stations.

EDITORIAL COMMENT: Incredible feat

WE can never give enough praise to those who go out of their way to help raise money for charity.

Today we feature a group of fundraisers who raised almost £30,000 for the Argus-backed Sparkle Appeal with a sponsored trek up Mount Kilimanjaro.

Faith Husband, Martin Gerrard, Carl Winters, Caroline Bird, Katrin Pritchard, Leah Givvons, Sam O’Sullivan, Paul Jones, Alison Hazeldin, Ellen Gilbert, Gill Watkins and Ben Pritchard-Jones tackled Africa’s tallest mountain on June 30.

It was an incredible feat and an incredible amount raised.

Our readers’ generosity appears to know no bounds, particularly when it comes to the Sparkle appeal.

The children’s centre at High Cross is a much-needed facility and will be invaluable for many disabled children and their families once it is fully up and running.

Currently the children have to visit many different clinics spread across Newport and further afield, which is far from ideal.

Well done to everyone who has raised money so far and those that will continue to do so in the future - every penny counts.