14-05-2025
Island couple to walk 1,200 miles from Canterbury to Rome
An Isle of Wight couple are walking over 1,200 miles from Canterbury Cathedral to Rome for charity.
Linda and Paul Southwell, who live in Wootton, will start the walk on Friday (May 16), following the Via Francigena route.
Linda said: "I've always wanted to do this walk when I retired, and the only way I'm going to do it is for charity."
The couple are doing the pilgrimage route in aid of the Lily Foundation, after hearing of young Islander Teddy Ward's diagnosis of a rare mitochondrial condition.
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Linda asked Teddy's father, Dan, for his permission to fundraise for the charity, and has since raised over £2,000.
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They will embark on their journey by getting the 7.05am bus from Wootton, making their way up to Canterbury to start their journey.
They will then travel across the Channel to Calais, cross France diagonally to Switzerland, before heading over the mountains and down through Italy.
Linda said she is walking in honour of her nan, who was her role model and would be so proud of her undertaking this feat.
In Rome, she hopes to meet the new Pope - although she understands he might be a bit busy.
Linda said: "We've done fundraising bits before, but never anything like this.
"It's been absolutely incredible."
