On the 8th of August, Shirley Ballas swapped the glitzy ballroom for the mountains of North Wales, as she faced her fears and took on the world’s fastest zip line, Velocity.
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SHIRLEY BALLAS TAKES ON VELOCITY AS PART OF HER CHARITY SKYATHLON CHALLENGE!
On a mission to raise money for a charity very close to her heart, Shirley flew 100mph across the blue Penrhyn Quarry lake as part of her charity skyathlon challenge, where she will also undertake a wing walk and a skydive.
After sadly losing her late brother to suicide at the mere age of just 44, and a close friend more recently, the Strictly legend is passionate about utilising her platform to create positive change and to raise awareness of the life-saving services the charity CALM can offer for those struggling.
CALM stands for Campaign Against Living Miserably and is a charity that works hard to take a stand against suicide. Standing against feeling rubbish, standing up to stereotypes and standing together to show life is always worth living. Every week 125 people in the UK take their own lives and CALM exists to change this - by offering life-saving services, provoking national conversation, and bringing people together to reject living miserably.
Shirley says, “Please join me on my challenge and donate whatever you can. It all makes a huge difference”.
Conquering Velocity was Shirley's first challenge out of three, with the aim to get her used to heights before finishing with a 13,000ft skydive. She said she was terrified of heights but wanted to push her boundaries in order to raise as much funds as possible for this vital cause, as "there’s nothing that terrifies me more than the thought of losing another person to suicide".
To donate to Shirley's Just Giving page please click here.
For more information about CALM, or if you're struggling, please click here. Their chat line is open 5 pm-midnight every day of the year.