A Winchester man has his sights on summiting Kilimanjaro after suffering a stroke whilst on holiday.

Alan Orchard, 50, has started a petition to raise money for The Stroke Association and in the first two weeks raised over £1,000.

He suffered an ischemic stroke in 2020 whilst in New Zealand and lost half his sight, along with being temporarily paralysed on his left hand side.

He has made it his mission to make as much money for the Stroke Association and to show others that life isn’t finished after a stroke.

READ MORE HERE: Plans for derelict petrol station spark opposition

Alan said: “I just wanted to give something back if I could. I know a stroke is hard and an absolute nightmare for some people. It’s that same old cliche, but it’s so true. Just keeping a positive mental attitude will get you through it.

“The Stroke Association has been so good, when I’m feeling down it is nice to have someone to talk to who has been through the same things. With friends they’re very supportive although as much as they try, they will never fully understand what I’ve been going through, and I do tend to hide things when I’m struggling and now that I’ve recently developed epilepsy as a consequence, The Stroke Association have totally helped by having open and honest conversations with me.”

In the summer, Alan, of Parchment Street,  will be working with New Energy Fitness in Winchester Brooks Centre, who will get him started on a new cardio training program as well as training with an old school friend who is a former Royal Marine, where the pair are planning to take on numerous up hill challenges.

Recently, Alan has been learning to support his body in an upright position and get used to performing some medial tasks again.

SEE MORE: Cheapest places to buy petrol in Winchester area

Only within the last three to four months has Alan been able to walk without a stick and is starting to find his balance. With not being able to feel his left foot these sessions and long walks up St Catherine’s Hill has allowed him to retrain his brain and legs.

Alan said: “I’ve been walking as much as I can since the stroke and I had to recover all by myself because of lockdown. I’ve been relearning how to scan and track as I lost vision on my left side and sometimes I get exhausted and lose balance, but life is too short not to try.”

Another hurdle that presented itself, was finding a medic to support Alan on his climb, so after staying in contact with the same medic, Roger Bocken who brought him back from New Zealand. The pair are working together to organise the climb in Tanzania.

Alan is planning his climb for early December during the short dry period, he will be on the eight-day Lemosho route which has an additional acclimatisation day which helps for a successful ascent.

For more information and links to Alan’s GoFundMe go to https://www.gofundme.com/f/climb-kilimanjaro-for-the-stroke-association or https://www.justgiving.com/page/alan-orchard-1704729455983