Earlier this year, the Torbay Express chose Above & Beyond as its Charity of the Year. After a summer of train travel between Bristol and Torbay, the team from the Torbay Express has raised an amazing £2,500 from on-board bucket collections.

The team is donating the funds raised to the area of greatest need and came to visit the older care ward (A528) to meet some of the staff and see the work that Above & Beyond does across our city centre hospitals.

In addition to the fundraising, the Torbay Express kindly gave us complimentary tickets for two volunteers to travel on the famous stream train route. So, on the last trip of the season, our volunteers Linda and Gwilym hopped aboard the train at Bristol Temple Meads to enjoy the scenic journey down to Devon. Linda wrote to us to tell us all about it! 

"The day dawned wet and it tipped it down every moment, other than a brief dry spell on the way home. However, armed with macs and a smile, we were determined to enjoy the day. Fate conspired to make it a delight and as we settled into our allocated seats we felt SO lucky.

Throughout the journey, steam would lay across our path in the most romantic and nostalgic way and there were many instances - sights, sounds and smells - that reminded us of our childhood travel. We went all the way to Kingswear, crossed over to Dartmouth on the ferry - in the still pouring rain - and found a nice hotel to eat lunch.

A short while into our return journey, we travelled the famous scenic line where the train track is only feet from the sea – and with the tide in and a stormy day it was more akin to being on a boat as the waves lashed the sea wall. It was an amazing day."

Ever committed to spreading the word about the charity, Linda and Gwilym sold raffle tickets to fellow passengers on behalf of the Torbay Express team and talked about the work that Above & Beyond does in our hospitals.

We want to say a massive thank you to the Torbay Express team for putting such enthusiasm into their fundraising and for generously donating the tickets!

Find out more about supporting Above & Beyond in your workplace by contacting Catherine on [email protected] or 0117 920 7120 and find out how you can get involved in volunteering here.