With a growing list of more than 12 million charity supporters using JustGiving to raise money for more than 7,000 charities, you’re bound to know someone in our community. And it’s nice to know that it’s not just ordinary people like you and me who roll up our sleeves – we’ve done some digging and found that we’re in pretty good company.
We’ve put together a list of famous faces who’ve become JustGiving celebrity fundraising stars who’ve raised money in the last two years.
At the top of the pile is Sir Ranulph Fiennes. The adventurer raised an absolutely incredible £2.5 million for Marie Curie Cancer Care when he conquered Mount Everest last May. The climb was in memory of his wife Ginny, who died in 2004 of stomach cancer. And the feat was made all the more incredible by the fact that, at 65, Sir Ranulph became the oldest Briton to ever reach the summit. Considered the world’s greatest living explorer, Sir Ranulph’s list of physical achievements is truly action hero-esque. The former SAS officer was the first person to reach the North and South Poles unaided, he was the first to completely cross Antarctica on foot, and in 2003 he ran seven marathons in seven days on seven continents. Phew!
Also in our list of top 10 fundraisers is Dragons’ Den entrepreneur Peter Jones, who raised £100,000 for Sport Relief when he cycled from John O’Groats to Land’s End, and former England rugby captain Lawrence Dallaglio who raised £74,000 by cycling from Rome to Murrayfield.
But it doesn’t matter who you are, or what you do to raise money for charity on JustGiving. It’s your personal stories, your incredible determination and your wacky and wonderful fundraising ideas which make every one of you JustGiving stars.
But just in case you fancy a nosey, here are our top 10 celeb fundraisers:
1. Sir Ranulph Fiennes
http://www.justgiving.com/everestranulph
At the age of 65, Sir Ranulph became the oldest Briton to conquer Mount Everest, raising more than £2.5 million for Marie Curie Cancer Care.
2. Peter Jones
http://www.justgiving.com/Pedal-power-1000
Peter’s entrepreneurial skills were put to the test as self-styled ‘fundraising guru’ for the Sport Relief Million Pound Bike Ride from John O’Groats to Land’s End, generating £100,000.
3. Lawrence Dallaglio
http://www.justgiving.com/Dallagliocycleslam
Lawrence raised more than £74,000 for Sport Relief by cycling from from Rome to Murrayfield, taking in Paris, Twickenham, Cardiff and Dublin along the way.
4. Alistair Campbell
http://www.justgiving.com/alastaircampbell
In honour of the 50th anniversary of Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research and in memory of his friend, Henry Hodge, who died from leukaemia, Alistair raised more than £50,000.
5. Jenson Button
http://www.justgiving.com/jb2010
Not content with Formula One glory, Jenson turned his hand to raising almost £20,000 for Make-A-Wish Foundation UK by completing the London Triathlon.
6. Joanna Lumley
http://original.justgiving.com/lumleyslads
The ‘Lumley’s Lads’ team, led by Joanna Lumley, completed 100km on foot in less than 30 hours in aid of the Gurka Welfare Trust and Oxfam, raising more than £17,000 in the process.
7. Paul Potts
http://www.justgiving.com/pottsyWalks
Britain’s Got Talent winner Paul Potts raised more than £13,000 for SOS Children’s Villages UK by completing a 190 mile walk from his front door in Port Talbot to the Royal Albert Hall.
8. David Walliams and Lara Stone
http://www.justgiving.com/DavidLara
In lieu of gifts and to celebrate their marriage, David and Lara asked their guests to consider giving a donation to the Elton John AIDS Foundation, raising more than £10,000 in the process.
9. Louise Minchin and Bill Turnbull
http://www.justgiving.com/Louise-Minchin/
BBC presenters Louise Minchin and Bill Turnbull took in the BBC’s re-creation of Michael Palin’s epic journey Around the World in 80 days, raising more than £8,000 for BBC Children in Need.
10. Katherine Jenkins
http://www.justgiving.com/katherinejenkins/
As patron of the Kidney Wales Foundation, Katherine raised over £5,000 by participating in the charity’s HSBC Cardiff 10K Run.
Tags: celebrity, famous faces, fundraisers, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, top 10