Wokingham’s Market Place saw the start of what promises to be an epic adventure for a woman and her dog, and all in the name of a good cause.
Julia Windmill, together with her dog Jess, embarked on a year of fundraising last Saturday for Charvil-based charity My Cancer My Choices.
For Julia, this year marks her tenth year being cancer free while Jess, her four-legged companion, has turned 100-years-old in doggie years.
Julia said: “I rescued Jess in April 2010 at five-months-old.
“She turned 14 last December, and by my reckoning in doggy years she reached her century this month.
Explaining her own milestone, she said: “In 2014, Wokingham Borough ran a trial offering early mammograms.
“I was 47 when the letter dropped through my door, and I joked with my friends about it being the slippery slope to 50.
“I would never have found the lump, and without that trial and having to wait those extra years to reach the statutory mammogram age, who knows where I would be now.
“Jess and I have so much to celebrate this year.
“I’m using these two fabulous milestones to emotionally extort money out of my friends and acquaintances to raise money for a wonderful charity I volunteer with, My Cancer My Choices.”
She added they will also be undertaking challenges together throughout the year.
“This will mainly entail Jess sitting in her rucksack, watching the world go by and eating cheese, whilst I carry said rucksack containing 16kgs of dog on my back.
“We’ll be coming up with other exciting ideas throughout the year.”
You can support Julia and Jess through their online fundraising page at www.justgiving.com/page/julia-jess2024.