The past month has seen a large variety of fundraising action by busy Rotary Club of Retford members.
Work started with the organisation of an emergency street collection in response to the floods in Pakistan. £541 was raised and immediately sent to the Disasters Emergency Committee. Retford Rotary Club would like to thank residents for their generous donations to help the victims of this disaster.
A Charity Golf Day which had been due to take place in August, supporting the NSPCC and Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, unfortunately fell victim to the severe summer storms, and was postponed. The reconvened day was again partially disrupted by the weather! However, spirits remained high, and many thanks are owed to the teams and players who participated, the sponsors, and the organisers of the event. A fabulous £2,700 was raised for charity.
The end of the month saw a large rota of Rotary Club members and friends at the Osberton Horse Trials – on car park duty! The Club received a donation to charity funds.
That same weekend saw the first of the Music Festival events. The RAF Waddington Military Wives Choir was enjoyed by a large audience of around 100 people, with much positive feedback from attendees.
The Club was delighted to receive feedback and thankyous this month from two very different recipients of Club funding, both showing that a little help can make a big impact.
Locally, in 2018, the Club had supported Retford Pilates Clinic in relation to MS. The initial support enabled further developments which ultimately resulted in a class being filmed and featuring on the national MS Trust website, which was widely used during lockdown, and more recently, a globally broadcast podcast regarding Neuro Pilates.
Internationally, the Rise to Shine Education Foundation, in Kenya, provides scholarships for very vulnerable children to attend secondary school. The Club received thanks and feedback regarding the sponsorship of a young boy, the funding enabling High School tuition, boarding school accommodation, books, school uniform and other supplies.
The next big Club fundraising event is the Victorian Christmas Fayre at Ye Olde Bell Hotel, Barnby Moor, 10.00am to 2.00pm on Thursday 17th November in aid of Bassetlaw Hospice, the NSPCC and local Rotary supported charities. Advance tickets are £8.00, including coffee and shortbread, available from www.thelittleboxoffice.com/rotaryclubofretford or call Rotarian Mike Davis on 07833 931314. Book early for this not-to-be-missed festive event!
Preparations continue for the first Retford Rotary Family Santa Run, taking place on the morning of Sunday 11th December, starting and finishing from Retford Market Square. Booking information will be on the Retford Rotary website nearer the event.