Bill marches on for heart charity

Retired infantry man Bill Beetham, 73, will be walking in the Citizen-sponsored British Heart Foundation (BHF) Blackpool Walkabout on September 16 -- for the third time!

He has been the top fund-raiser of both the Blackpool Walk and the North West Regional Walk for the last two years, and he's aiming to raise more money this year for vital equipment.

Bill knows first-hand about the benefits of fund-raising after undergoing a heart by-pass operation in 1996.

"I was getting pains down my right arm and shoulder. The doctor put me in for a check with the chest clinic.

"I was up there about two hours and then they found something was wrong. I waited a couple of years and then in February I got a phone call at 12.50pm and was in that day by 2pm. The operation was done the next day. I was only in a week."

Bill, who served in the Lancashire Fusiliers and the Loyal Regiment, laughs when he thinks of the stir his visitors caused.

"They were glad to get rid of us because all my mates from Preston that I had served with were coming through. It was a relief sometimes when they had all gone and it was quiet!"

It did not take long for Bill to get active again, walking and raising money for the BHF.

"I was 68 when I had my heart by-pass, and I was 69 when I did my first walk. I thought 'let me put some money back into the system'. Since the operation I've never had a twinge."

Bill has enjoyed walking with his sons Peter, 47, and David, 51, in the Lake District, and has been joined on BHF walks by his sons, and his three grandchildren too. His wife, Ann, prefers to stay at home. "She is glad to get me out of the road," he laughed.

The secret of Bill's fund-raising success seems to be his wide -- and generous -- circle of friends. He drums up the support of many former colleagues by visiting them at ex-servicemen's clubs.

"They are a captive audience," he joked. His enthusiasm, though, is obviously catching. "Some of the lads give a fiver straight off," he said.