Leicester student skydives from 10000 feet to raise money for charity founded by the man who saved her life

Student from our University and unequivocal star of the summer Abbie Brown skydived from 10,000 feet in August to raise money for children’s charity ‘Chain of Hope’- an organisation that has a very personal connection to her.

On 21 May 1993, when Abbie was six months old, Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub performed open-heart surgery on her, which saved her life. Professor Yacoub went on to found of the charity ‘Chain of Hope’ in the UK in 1995.

The charity exists to provide children from developing countries affected by life-threatening heart conditions with the necessary life-saving treatment and/or surgery that they would otherwise not have access to.

Speaking about her experience, Abbie said: “Millions of children around the world do not have access to the life-changing opportunity that quality cardiac care provides. So, this summer, I soared out of a plane in a tandem parachute jump to raise money for an amazing charity that provides children with this chance.

"Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub performed my open-heart surgery. Four and a half hours operating time, a plethora of medical resources, the NHS and the expertise of a team of medical staff are the reason that I am where I am today, the reason I am able to lead the life that I am incredibly grateful for. The work that Chain of Hope do is astounding and desperately needed.”

More information on Chain of Hope can be found here: https://www.chainofhope.org/what-we-do/

A donation page for Chain of Hope: https://chainofhope.charitycheckout.co.uk/Donate#!/