When Porirua grandma Sharon Rose thought about the best way to celebrate her 50th birthday, she knew a simple cake and candles wouldn't cut it. Instead, she marked the milestone by standing in a carpark surrounded by 100 cheering onlookers, using the body weight of her 1.5m (4'11") frame to a pull a 10-tonne truck.
"I never believed I'd make it to 50 and I promised myself if I did, I'd do something big," explains Sharon, who struggles with anxiety, depression and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from childhood trauma.
"I've survived five suicide attempts and once I got to 45, I realised I was probably going to make it to 50. I wanted to do something strong for it.”
Known to family and friends as “Shazza”, the grandmother-of-seven decided to set a six-month goal last year to get physically strong. She originally wanted to pull a four-tonne ambulance, raising money along the way for the Wellington Free Ambulance service, since they'd been there each time to save her life.
This story is from the May 2, 2022 edition of New Zealand Woman's Weekly.
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This story is from the May 2, 2022 edition of New Zealand Woman's Weekly.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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