Coffee shop manager Tim Olsen has been known to walk, run, diet, shave his head and dress-up as Tinkerbell to collect cash for his favourite charities but it is his most recent fundraising adventure which has left a lasting impression.
Tim has had the continent of Africa tattooed on his arm after loyal customers and colleagues at Wilmslow's Starbucks store, on Grove Street, helped him smash his fundraising target by nearly 300%.
The pre-Christmas appeal invited customers to support the East Africa Appeal from Mary's Meals, an international charity that establishes school feeding projects in African communities where poverty and hunger prevent children from gaining an education.
Tim pledged to 'get inked' if donations reached £380, the cost of one tonne of life saving fortified porridge which would provide 13,000 meals for struggling Somalian families.
Inspired by Tim's commitment to the cause, his customers, colleagues, family and friends donated over £1,000 to the appeal.
Tim said, "I've always found that if you make people smile, they'll be more willing to reach into their pockets for a worthy cause."
Tim's tattoo was created by Wilmslow based ink artists, 'The Tattoo Company', who did the tattoo for free in support of the appeal. Artist Adam created an outline of Africa in various shades of blue, the colour of the charity's logo, to show the positive impact Mary's Meals is having across the continent.
This recent endeavour takes Tim's personal fundraising total to over £42,000 during the past five years, but he has no intention of stopping there. He will be running the Great Manchester 10K Run in May.
Tim is still collecting donations for Mary's Meals; for more information or to donate visit www.justgiving.com/tattoo-for-africa.
Photo: Caption: Tim Olsen sits for his tattoo after customers smash his charity fundraising total by nearly 300%.
