A man from an Oxfordshire village has raised more than £2,500 by mowing lawns for charity.
Roger Longshaw retired in March after selling his engineering business and since then he has found himself mowing other people’s lawns nearly five days a week.
Mr Longshaw has a personal connection to the charity Muscular Dystrophy which funds research into treatments for rare and life-limiting muscle wasting conditions.
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Across the UK, the charity supports more than 110,000 adults and children and Mr Longshaw decided he wanted to turn his gardening interest into a fundraiser for the charity.
So far, Mr Longshaw has raised over £2,500 for the charity fundraiser.
He told the Oxford Mail: “After selling my business, I wanted to carry on doing something to keep myself busy.
“I’m an outdoorsy person so I thought I’d offer to cut people’s grass and if they pay me then I could donate the money to charity.”
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Mr Longshaw put brochures through letterboxes to spread the word in the local community and he even sought out the support of local businesses.
He said: “The support has been unbelievable.
“My little idea of going out to cut a couple of people’s lawns has turned into something much bigger than I could have imagined and I’m so grateful for everyone’s support!”
The local agricultural and ground care dealer Farol donated £2,000 worth of equipment to Mr Longshaw to contribute to the fundraiser.
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Laura Birch, marketing assistant at Farol, said: “Farol saw that Roger is doing amazing work for the local community and Muscular Dystrophy UK around the Miltons.
“We thought it was incredibly noble so we wanted to help him out with some professional turf equipment so he could continue to donate 100 per cent of the fee to a great cause”.
Mr Longshaw has received plenty of additional support from businesses within the community.
Greenplant Plant Hire has provided access to any plant required without any fee and the property consultants Morgan & Associates have contracted Mr Longshaw to maintain the gardens of empty properties.
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Phil Heighway, regional development manager for Muscular Dystrophy UK in the south west, said: “Roger’s really stumbled upon a brilliant fundraising idea – and he’s certainly got the momentum going!
“It’s amazing that local businesses are getting involved too.
“We’re so appreciative of him giving up his time and energy to cut people’s grass – and for his entrepreneurial spirit.
“Every pound raised will make a huge difference – and help us get closer to finding a cure for those living with muscle-wasting conditions.”
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