Last week, I found the following post on Facebook which came from Sport Thought.
‘Bangor Boxing Champion Jamie Edwards Leads Fundraiser for North Wales Recovery Communities.
Jamie Edwards, a celebrated boxing champion hailing from Bangor, is raising money for a cause close to his heart. At 31 years old, Jamie boasts an impressive career with a collection of titles.
Driven by a desire to give back to his community and support North Wales Recovery Communities, Jamie has embarked on a fundraising mission with Penrhyn House at its epicentre. Having overcome personal demons in his past, Jamie is determined to use his platform to effect positive change.
In his own words, Jamie shares his journey: “My name is Jamie Edwards, and I am in recovery. Penrhyn House has played a huge part in my recovery, so over the next few months, I’m going to be raising money to help revamp the Penrhyn House gym.”
Reflecting on his own transformative journey, Jamie acknowledges the pivotal role played by Penrhyn House—a space where he found solace and support on his path towards sobriety. Determined to give back to the place that gave him a new lease on life, Jamie is spearheading efforts to revamp the Penrhyn House gym, a space in need of renovation. Jamie aims to create a space that fosters healing and growth for individuals seeking recovery.
Driven by his passion for both boxing and community, Jamie is pulling out all the stops to raise funds for the cause. From pledging proceeds from his upcoming fights to embarking on a series of daunting physical challenges—including a daring ascent and descent of Snowdon in under two hours.
Speaking to Jamie about his fundraiser, he said:
“I attended N/A meetings at Penrhyn House in Bangor, NWRC. I’ve spent a lot of my adult life struggling with addiction and wanted to address my problems, but I didn’t know where to go or what to do. However, I found myself at Penrhyn House.
Penrhyn House has a good gym space, but the equipment they have is very limited and outdated. Since getting clean, I have been able to excel in my boxing career to the level I’ve wanted for years, recently winning the BBU British title. I could never have done this without the help of everyone at Penrhyn, so I decided that I would try my best to get a project together where the community could pull together and help.
We have decided to put together some events, i.e., running up Snowdon in under 2 hours (this has been postponed for a few weeks due to dangerous weather conditions). At the end of July, I will be doing 7 marathons in 7 days, and in September (Recovery Month), we are doing a team relay run from South Wales to North Wales.
So far, the community has pulled together, and we have started getting donations coming in. We have also had over 200 litres of paint donated by Brewers Decorating Centre in Chester, tickets for the sea wake boat trip to raffle off by Anglesey Boat Trips, and framed photos of local landmarks by Adam Paul Photography to auction off to raise funds. We have had support from local gym owners like Mike Egan, Gaz Stalman, and Daryl Gallager who have helped where they can with equipment, and Marisa who has donated a top-of-the-range treadmill
This project means the world to me because I have managed to do a U-turn on my past life with addiction and prison, and now I spend my days trying to help others. I could never have gotten to this point without Penrhyn or this gym.
We are looking for any local businesses that would like to jump on board with the project and help the community out. If anyone is interested in this, then feel free to contact myself or Penrhyn House or anyone from the North Wales Recovery Community. I think if we all pull together, we can do something amazing here that will help countless people and change countless lives.
I believe addiction has affected a lot of people in our area, either directly or someone in their family or friendship circle. So please, can we all pull together and be part of this amazing project?”
Photo Credit: RAM Robin Abas Media
To anyone looking to support Jamie and donate, please follow this link.‘