Roller Roy's memory walk

Roy Payton, known as Roller Roy, has raised £12,000 for children’s charities over the years with his roller skating and ukelele playing. However, his latest fundraiser will coincide with Older People’s Day on October 1.

His fundraiser, which will start at 11am at the RNLI Museum on September 27 will be held on the same day at The Good Life Show at the View Hotel , which has been organised by Eastbourne Seniors Forum.

Roy is in his eighties and started on a fitness regime a few years ago and lost two stone. He now believes we shouldn’t stop exercising as we get older.

Roy said, “We grow old when we stop exercising.”

Roy’s weekly programme includes skating, walking, swimming and daily gym workouts at the David Lloyd.

He now gives talks about his life and has started entertaining people in nursing homes with his ukelele.

He said, “My goal in life is not to be better than anybody else but be better than I have ever been before. I firmly believe that one kind word can change someone’s entire day and I learned this first hand as a successful checkout partner at Waitrose where I spent 10 years.”

Roy’s fundraising is done in memory of his daughter, who died from cancer at just one-year-old.

He said, “The memory of my lovely daughter Deborah is my motivation for all that I do in my life today.

“She would have been 49 years old this year and in a strange way I feel she is still with me and many people both young and old are benefiting from her short life.”

Roy is hoping as many people as possible will join him for his memory walk.