Some did it for the thrill. All did it for charity. Bill Rogers did it for love.
At 88-year-old, Rogers was one of 80 people who rappelled down the 24-story Brady Sullivan building in Manchester as part of the “Over the Edge” fundraiser organized by the United Way of Greater Nashua.
Rogers chooses to do death-defying feats that would scare the daylights out those half his age in memory of his wife Natalie, who died in 2017. He’s gone skydiving, ziplining and planned to swim with sharks.
Tuesday was his second time scaling down one of Manchester’s tallest buildings, the city where he lives.
“That was wonderful,” he said, feet firmly planted back on the ground. “I enjoyed it.”
Each of the participants raised between $1,000 and $9,000 for various charities. One of the first to go off the top was former U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte, who was joined by blind activist Randy Pierce and organizer Mike Apfelberg
Rogers and his wife Natalie were married for 65 years before she passed. She always knew her husband had an adventurous side, so it makes perfect sense to Rogers to do these crazy things in her memory.
“I had an amazing life with her,” Rogers said two years ago before scaling down the exact same building. “I was blessed. Every morning, she tells me to get up and get going on this or that for as long as I can.”