Help #DEFYIMPOSSIBLE & [re]IGNITE HOPES & DREAMS

Jennie Bewes is organising this fundraiser.

Donation protected

Hi, I’m Jen, better known as HeliJen, and I'm on a mission to inspire the young & young-at-heart to #DEFYIMPOSSIBLE and shoot for their dreams.

They say 'actions speak louder than words', so I'll be leading by example with an attempt to defy impossible, by designing, building and flying a wearable aircraft - a Jetsuit - across Australia to set an official Guinness World Record.

It's a distance further than the diameter of the moon that I'll fly in 7-minute increments (stopping only to refuel) on the Jetsuit that gives your arms the superpower they need to take flight - think Iron [Wo]Man

The messages I've already received, from both adults and children, telling me how it’s inspired them to think bigger, is the single biggest reason I'm doing this: if it triggers the hopes, dreams and self-belief in others, and brings colour to these grey times, it's been a huge success, regardless of the Record outcome itself.

Here’s one of my favourites, from Luca Voirol, who felt inspired to design and build a Jetsuit for his favourite bear …and did an excellent job!

As for the technology, our IJ6180 Jetsuit has 6 mini-jet engines (2 strapped to each arm and 2 strapped to my back) that produce up to 180kg of thrust, enabling vertical take-off and landing ...which I'll be required to do almost 1,000 times across Australia!

There are no controls on the Jetsuit. It is purely body-controlled, simply by moving my head (to turn), arms (to ascend/descend) and body position (to move forwards/backwards).

But with up to 180kg of thrust pushing into my shoulders the entire time, it'll feel similar to holding a 7-minute plank, 16 times a day, every day for almost 2 months.

So am I an athlete? No. FAR from it! I'm just a girl from humble countryside beginnings, that learned the power of reframing perspective to overcome major obstacles and achieve things that many thought I couldn't, in both business and more recently, aviation.

I’ll be using everything that I know - and lots that I don’t - to overcome this gruelling physical, mental and technical challenge, to demonstrate that 'impossible' really is just a possibility waiting to happen, and that whatever your dream, with courage, conviction, an adaptive mindset and a few good humans to cheerlead you through, you really can transform your life into the adventure you'd want written.

Because time - not money - is our only truly finite resource, and the only thing we'll regret when it runs out, are the chances we didn't take.

TARGET DATE: mid-2022 (subject to COVID and general technicalities)

WHERE: Fremantle, WA --> Sydney, NSW, Australia

FUNDING: I've fully self-funded the project, including the Jetsuit build (by selling my home and quitting my job to give it my all) ...but I'll need help to cover the cost of materials for the World Record itself (a whopping $250,000).

...no contribution is too small, and all funding ideas welcomed!

Huge thanks for ALL your support - financial and moral - helping to bring some hope back into this crazy world amongst all its challenges.

Per ardua ad astra,

Jen