Sponsor Bernice’ Birthday Leap of Courage

Bernice Takes on the Spinnaker Tower

Some birthdays are marked with cake and cards. Others are marked by stepping off the edge of a 170 metre tower with nothing but a rope, a harness, and a whole lot of courage. This year, Bernice Stephens has chosen the second option.

Bernice is taking on a sponsored abseil down the iconic Spinnaker Tower, one of the tallest and most recognisable landmarks on the south coast. To be clear, this is not a gentle lean backwards and a polite shuffle down the wall. This is a full, heart pounding descent down a glass and steel giant, with sweeping views of the Solent, the wind in your ears, and gravity doing its thing. It is exhilarating, exposed, and for most of us, slightly terrifying in the very best way.

What makes this even more extraordinary is that Bernice is partially sighted. That means this is not just brave, it is properly bold. She is choosing to trust the rope, trust the team, and step into the unknown. That takes serious guts.

So why do it? Why choose something this mad for a birthday?

Bernice wanted to do something that mattered. She is taking on this challenge in support of WayMaker, a charity committed to practical, lasting change among vulnerable children and poor communities across Africa. WayMaker builds schools, creates access to education, and brings dignity and hope to places where opportunity is painfully limited. This is not about short term fixes, it is about changing futures.

What really captured Bernice’s heart, though, was the story behind the charity. WayMaker was founded by Andy Robinson, who is currently living with terminal stage 4 cancer. Despite that reality, Andy continues to take risks, dream big, and press forward to help others. He has refused to let his circumstances shrink the vision.

Bernice saw that courage and felt challenged by it. Rather than standing on the sidelines, she decided to step out herself. This abseil is her way of saying yes, of taking a risk, of doing something costly and uncomfortable for the sake of others.

By supporting Bernice, you are not just applauding an epic abseil down one very tall tower. You are helping WayMaker continue to make a real and tangible difference in the lives of children and communities who desperately need it.

So, cheer loudly. Give generously. And be inspired by a woman who decided that her birthday would be about more than herself.

Thank you for standing with Bernice, and thank you for helping WayMaker make a way where there is no way.