My proudest personal achievement was completing the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award. It took me years to complete...it included an arduous 2 week trek in the Indian Himalayas aged 18. I also helped paint a school in an Indian village. To fundraise for that trip, I did a charity static line parachute jump with the RAF. I learned how to sail a 64ft gaff ketch yacht to Holland and back, an adventure which included an air ambulance rescue of a crew member who was swept overboard in a storm by a huge wave when I was 17. I completed over 300 hours of volunteering at university...so many different life lessons, skills, friendships, and adventures. The award had a monumental impact on my life and who I am. I am so sad to see that the Duke of Edinburgh has passed away and feel enormous gratitude for the life experiences I had as a result of the programme that he pioneered. It made such a difference to me. He lived an extraordinary and interesting life.