THE MOTHER of Bridge Street bombing victim Tim Parry is to take a giant leap towards a lasting peace - thousands of feet above the hills of Shropshire.

Wendy Parry will join seven friends and colleagues for a sponsored parachute jump in April, just weeks after the fifth anniversary of the IRA attack.

The daring leap will lead the way in raising the £1m needed to achieve Mrs Parry and her husband Colin's dream of a residential peace centre in Warrington.

Mrs Parry said: "Now that everybody's sponsored me there is no way I can back down, but I may need somebody to push me out on the day!

We're hoping to raise as much as possible and to have a bit of fun in the process."

The centre would accommodate 36 youngsters from Northern Ireland and the Republic who already participate in the Tim Parry Scholarship exchange scheme.

Mrs Parry said: "Youngsters from Warrington have had a great time in Ireland - last year's group have kept in touch with the friends they've made and have since made return visits. The Irish children would love to come to Warrington, but there is nowhere here for them all to stay." Land has already been earmarked for the centre on Cromwell Avenue, next to St Gregory's High School, and Mrs Parry hopes her skydiving feat will inspire other efforts to get the project off the ground. The couple hope that the centre will also provide a much needed venue for the wider community to use for local activities.

Besides promoting better understanding between the two communities, the centre would serve as a fitting memorial to Tim and three-year old Johnathan Ball, who also died in the blast.

On March 21, silence will descend on Warrington as five doves are released in Bridge Street at the exact time of the bombing in 1993.

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.