I have always been a very strong advocate of the importance of education. I was very fortunate that my parents not only encouraged me to improve my education but that they also supported me financially with the costs of education, notwithstanding the sacrifices they had to make to do so.

Many youngsters,unfortunately, are simply not able to improve their education for reasons ,including financial, which are outwith their control.

Having personally seen and been the beneficiary of good education, as a member of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS), I am joining 24 fellow CAs by taking part in 'Foundation 25' to raise funds for the ICAS Foundation.

Each of us targets to raise £1,000 ie £25,000 in total.

Why The ICAS Foundation? The ICAS Foundation supports academically talented students from disadvantaged communities who want to study accountancy and finance at university, offering bursary funding, personal mentors and support in obtaining internships and graduate jobs.

As a charity that relies on donations, the Foundation couldn’t do what they do without the help of ICAS members, and they need support more than ever before. Applications continue to rise each year, and this year there was a record-breaking number of young people apply for funding.

To raise the targettted £1,000, I have set myself a personal challenge to cycle 3,297 miles (5,305 KM) in the period from August 1 to December 31,2023. Why 3,297 miles? This is simply equivalent to the driving distance in the USA from Seattle to Miami - ie the coast to coast distance from the North West to the South East!

I challenge myself to complete this distance which ,assuming an average of 15mph, will take me 220 hours!

As I undertake this challenge, please join me in supporting future CAs by donating to the ‘Foundation 25’ fundraising campaign today. All donations, irrespective of size, will be very gratefully received.

Many thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Graham Getty

PS If you donate anonymously please send me a private message on LinkedIn as I would like to thank you personally.

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