Help for Heroes supported by mum and son skydive

What did you do for your last big birthday? A party and a few presents are a given – but how many of us can say we raised thousands for charity… and jumped out of a plane?

Mum and son Naomi McLean and Corey McLean from Ballyduff, Northern Ireland, have recently been on a tandem skydive adventure, the Newtownabbey Times reports.

Thus far the Northern Health and Social Care Trust support worker and her son have already brought in £2,500 for Help for Heroes with their brave feat.

Ms McLean told the news provider that she is about to turn 40, and her son has just celebrated his 18th birthday. They decided they would "do something big for our birthdays and raise money for charity."

The pair wanted to pick an activity they would remember forever, she said.

Though she first picked a hot air balloon ride, when that turned out not to be feasible the pair went for a skydive instead, she has explained.

There are still collection buckets raising cash for H4H off the back of the dive at Belfast Meat Centre and Carnmoney's Asher’s Bakery. These will be there until August 25th, the day Ms McLean turns 40.

She has also revealed to the news provider that she told her fellow divers (her son's girlfriend also took part, for the charity MENCAP) to consider the fact that the jump was nothing compared to what the people going to war that go through limb loss or worse in the line of duty face.

Help for Heroes helps service people who have been wounded, as well as their relatives. The support the charity gets from the public ranges from cake sales to bike rides.

At the moment poppies involved in the Tower of London Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red installation – marking World War One – are being sold to help the charity, as well as several other similar organisations.

The installation involves ceramic flowers installed in their thousands in the dry moat at the Tower.