A TEAM of fundraisers who stomped 175 miles in aid of the Weldmar Hospicecare Trust has raised more than four thousand pounds for charity.

The Dorchester Stompers, made up of a group of men and women who all work in Dorchester, pulled on their walking boots in May to trek along the West Highland and Great Glen Way in Scotland.

They completed a distance equivalent to seven marathons in just seven days.

A cheque worth £4,469.34 has now been presented to the Weldmar Hospicecare Trust.

All members of the dedicated team, who work at Dorchester Police Station apart from one member who works for Leonard Cheshire Disability, said they were pleased to be able to present the local charity with the cheque.

Stomper Tony Freudenfeld, 63, a desk operator at Dorchester Police Station, was inspired to fundraise for the charity after his wife Jean had a breast cancer scare.

The experience prompted her husband to do something to support people with any type of cancer or other life-threatening illness.

He said: “It was great that we all started off together and we all finished together in one piece.

“It was quite an achievement.”

Another member, PCSO Mark Wodarek-Black, added that his mother-in-law had breast cancer which made the charity relevant to him.

He said: “My wife’s mum had cancer and Tony and I got talking and we thought why don’t we take on a challenge for ourselves while at the same time doing something to raise money for a cancer charity.” The other members of the team are Daniel Ling, Sarah Pilcher, Kristy Heron, Vickie Hedges, Geoff Hicks and Wendy Bainbridge.

Sue Leighton, major events fundraising manager at Weldmar Hospicecare Trust, said: “It was a fantastic thing that they did.

“It is also an absolutely fantastic sum that they have raised.

“Without people raising funds like this we couldn’t continue.”

The group wanted to give a special thanks to the staff at Dorset Property, Royal Oak at Milborne St Andrew, Magna Housing Association, Moose Club and all of the businesses and residents of Dorchester and the surrounding villages who supported the cause.

Mr Freudenfeld said the group was already planning its next fundraising venture.