The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
A Holbeach man who turned 90 years old in May has vowed to dedicate his life to his charity work, with a sponsored church walk planned for September and a bid to scale Lincoln’s Steep Hill.
Geoffrey Gott, of Spalding Road, is collecting for his third sponsored Ride and Stride walk in September – having missed last year’s church walk due to illness, including skin cancer on his cheek.
“Now I’m 90 I feel a lot better, so I’m doing it again,” he said, adding: “I’m very lively and full of mischief.”
Mr Gott has decided to return fully to charity work. “What I’m hoping to do, for the rest of the time I’ve got left and while I’m able, I want to raise as much money and do as much charity work as I can. That’s my ambition,” he said.
Former music teacher Mr Gott said he cared for his wife, June, full-time for the last five years of her life. June passed away three-and-a-half years ago in September 2015.
Mr Gott said: “When she died, all my friends I knew before had also died. So I had to start from scratch.
“I was determined to make some new friends and I think I managed it. I’d like to make more, but they’re all so lovely.
“I go to everything that’s going on.”
Mr Gott used his birthday as another giving opportunity.
“Instead of me having presents for my 90th birthday, I said I’d rather give a donation to charity and I got £260 together.”
This money was the presented to Holbeach’s Chosen charity, which donates to good causes locally.
In 2017, Mr Gott raised £660 during the Ride and Stride church day, and has set a target of £500 for this year’s event – a figure he has halfway reached so far.
“It won’t be ride and stride, it will be ‘stride’ for me. I stopped cycling recently so I shall walk round as many churches and chapels that I can manage.”
Money raised from Ride and Stride goes towards the upkeep of the churches and chapels that take part in the annual event. Mr Gott attends church twice every Sunday.
Mr Gott has lived in Holbeach for 30 years. He was born in Moulton Seas End, where he also lived for 30 years.
He has two daughters, Christine Wright and Judith Browse, as well as grandchildren and a great-grandaughter.
Keen gardener Mr Gott said he keeps youthful by being active. He belongs to an over-50s bowls team and walks a lot.
He used to walk with the Walking for Health group but has had to stop as they walk “too far and too fast” – but he still meets up with them.
“I still pester them, have a good laugh and I love them all,” he said. “They know, I’ve told them!”
Mr Gott’s next charity walk he hoped would be a return to the top of Thorpe Cloud in Derby – but the mile-and-a-half from the car park to the walk is “too much”.
He will instead make his way to the top of Steep Hill in Lincoln. “To climb Steep Hill at 90, that wouldn’t be too bad.”
