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South Surrey pair make drop for charity

Tracey Ellis and John Roach took the Drop Zone challenge Sept. 13, helping raise $169,000 for Easter Seals BC
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Peninsula residents Tracey Ellis (above right) and John Roach (below) rappelled down 20 storeys to raise funds for Easter Seals B.C.

Sixty brave souls – including Semiahmoo Peninsula residents Tracey Ellis and John Roach – helped raised thousands for charity at Drop Zone Vancouver earlier this month.

The challenge saw participants rappel 20 stories down a high-rise building in downtown Vancouver after having collected pledges to complete the feat.

Funds raised – $169,000 in total – will support children with physical and cognitive disabilities through Easter Seals BC.

Roach, who took part in the Sept. 13 event while dressed as Batman, signed up for the event as a way to celebrate his 50th birthday.

“I look at (what Easter Seals does) and I just think it’s brilliant,” Roach's wife, Donna, told Peace Arch News prior to his descent. “This is going to help other children… it’s a really, really great cause.”

Ellis, meanwhile, decided to take on the challenge as a way to face her fear of heights head-on – and for the fourth time, to boot.

“When I think of these kids, every day they have a challenge to overcome,” she told PAN. “Certainly, I can go over a railing for them.”