“I will be jumping into the void for only few seconds. This is nothing compared to the void that Mattia's loss would have been to all of us. We have been very lucky.”
One of those who will be there is our supporter Nicola Sacca, whose young son Mattia was struck by meningitis B and septicaemia in 2011.
Luckily Mattia managed to escape the claws of this deadly disease. Doctors gave him a 20 per cent survival chance, but he proved them wrong.
Nicola told us: “He is now a boisterous, lively teenager, full of beans and energy to keep fighting his brother and sister, as well as all the challenges that meningitis has left him with.” You can read more on Mattia’s story here
Just a few seconds
“I will be jumping into the void for only few seconds”, Nicola added. “This is nothing compared to the void that Mattia's loss would have been to all of us if MenB had had the better of him. We have been very lucky and now we try to keep helping others through Meningitis Now.”
Here Nicola tells us why he’s looking forward to taking on a skydive.
“Honestly, this idea has been brewing in my mind for so many years. But for one reason or another, I never took the initiative and did it. I always found excuses not to.
“At the end of June, we were going to France for a wedding. Whilst my wife was driving, I received an email from Meningitis Now announcing a skydiving event. I did not think at all and just entered my details to participate. I said to myself, either now or never. Just do it. And here we go!
Life is to be lived
“I physically need a thrilling experience that will remind me that life is worth living. I am not scared to jump into the void. Associating this fun event to an incredibly worthy cause that is to collect funds to help all those families that Meningitis Now support, it was really a no brainer.
“Sometimes, you just need to follow your instinct and blanking out the rational side of your brain that might be whispering at you and saying: ‘Ohhhh, it is a dangerous sport. You should not do this. You never know what could happen, and bla bla bla.’ I just shut this voice down and I look forward with impatience to the skydive.
“I hope that the British weather will be great and play its key part. I really hope that it will be a glorious and sunny day to allow me to admire from a few thousand feet high, the beautiful Oxfordshire landscape.
Experience an adrenaline rush
“Mentally, I am not really scared by the fact that I will be jumping out of an airplane. The idea of floating in the air at extremely high speed is overly exciting. Experiencing an adrenaline rush can make you feel very alive. Some say that once you land for the very first time, you want to go back on the airplane and do it again. I might consider this option.
“I do know for certain that I will be screaming while diving down and I cannot guarantee that I will not swear, but that’s part of the fun, I guess. I might be doing it either in Italian or French, yet to be decided. I am seriously thinking of taking the option to have a video done, so I can share with all the people that kindly donated to support Meningitis Now.
Sign up and join us
“This is my first ever skydiving experience. It might open the gate to a wonderful hobby … who knows?”
In just 11 days, Nicola has already raised some £1,100 of his initial £1,000 target. Because of the great support received he has now doubled his target to £2,000. You can help him better this by going to his fundraising page here.
And if you’re inspired to join Nicola on the day we’d love to see you at RAF Weston on the Green in Oxfordshire on September the 21st. Visit our page here, where you’ll get all the information you need to sign up.
