A 103-year-old Second World War veteran completed his third annual fundraising walk Friday morning with his 103rd lap of the courtyard at Oak Bay’s Carlton House.
John Hillman, who took 10 days to cover the distance, is now waiting to see if he’ll meet his $103,000 fundraising benchmark.
Hillman had raised $81,055 by the end of his walk — about 80 per cent of his goal.
“Considering how much he’s raised, that’s not that much further to go,” said Jacqueline Prewett, Carlton House manager of digital marketing.
She said his online fundraising page will stay open until the end of May at https://savethechildren.akaraisin.com/ui/teamsave/p/Hillman103.
Money raised goes to Save the Children, particularly for children affected by the war in Ukraine.
Hillman held similar fundraisers in 2020 and 2021 to mark his 101st and 102nd birthdays.
“I’m very happy, very happy indeed at my efforts,” he said Friday. “Not only that but it’s a tremendous response I got. Fantastic.
“I couldn’t wish for anything better.”
By coincidence, his last day was Friday the 13th and he had to walk 13 laps, Prewett said.
“It was wonderful,” she said. “He had a glass of scotch waiting for him at the end.”
Many people walked laps with Hillman on Friday, Prewett said.
