Lloyd Kembrey, Facilities Manager at Bristol University, was one of four individuals nominated for the prestigious award last month following a year of charity challenges
By Josie Hodgson, News Co-Editor
The Daily Mirror's Pride of Britain Awards have been honouring the nation's unsung heroes since 1999. Each year, ITV West Country sends a fundraiser from each of the regions to the star-studded awards ceremony, nominated by people living across the region.
Last month, the University of Bristol's Facilities Manager, Lloyd Kembrey, was selected as a finalist in the ITV News West Country's 2024 Regional Fundraiser of the Year Award.
Kembrey, who has been working at the University since December 2022, completed 15 challenges over the course of a year alongside his school friends - Jake Macmillan, Brad Kislingbury and Joe Humphreys.
Kembrey's year of fundraising included running the London Marathon, bungee jumping dressed as Father Christmas, battling sub-zero temperatures in a 31-mile ice skating race, a 24-hour cycle, and canoeing the River Wye.
His challenges raised £43,000 for Jessie May - a charity which provides at-home nursing support to children with life-limiting diseases, and which supported Kembrey's cousins, Francesca and Josephine, who were born with Sanfilippo disease Type A.
Kembrey's cousins passed away as teenagers in 2006 and 2009. The rare brain disease has recently been the subject of UK research.
In conversation with Epigram, Kembrey outlined the shock he felt after finding out about his nomination, describing how he found out about the Pride of Britain nomination just before starting an Ironman event in Sweden.
'It came as a huge shock for me, as I was not aware I had been nominated at all. When I received the phone call, I was stunned silent, and could not believe that it was not a prank! Then hearing the reasons that people decided to nominate me was very touching and humbling.'
For Kembrey, the year of challenges involved many memorable moments, but two events in particular stood out to him - the first being the London marathon, followed by the ice skating ultra-marathon in Finland in February.
'I had done a few marathons before, but the London event was unlike any I have ever done. The course was so loud throughout, and you really did feel the love and support from the crowd.
'The second was the ice skating ultra-marathon - the weather was -14 degrees, and we completed seven laps of a circuit on a frozen lake with only three months of practice - for four out of the five of us - at a rink in Bristol. Being out on the ice, I suddenly realised how underprepared I was.'
Kembrey discussed the extensive support he received from the University, describing not just the provision of equipment, but also of the many donations from colleagues.
'With our challenges being so varied, there were times where we did not have all the equipment we needed, but through the support of the University's community, we were able to borrow everything we needed.'
Other inspirational finalists for the ITV News West Country's 2024 Regional Fundraiser of the Year Award included Emma Stuart, who raised £50,000 for Cots for Tots through a Knitting Shop in the reception of the St Michael's Hospital in Bristol. Gary Cook from Wiltshire also raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for charity through metal detecting, and Louise Polledri set up the Sam Polledri Foundation with the intention of raising funds to install public access defibrillators.
When asked what the future holds for potential further fundraising, Kembrey spoke of his plans for next Spring, outlining his desire to attempt a World Record.
'We are hoping to use this as an opportunity to both fundraise again, but also to raise the awareness of the charity through a hopefully notable challenge.
'We are also planning to film it, so expect amateur camera work and awkward on screen interviews!'
To donate to Jessie May, or to read more about Kembrey's fundraising, visit Kembrey's JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lloyd-kembrey.
