Stagecoach charity golf day
A charity golf day will take place on April 25 at Westgate Golf Club in memory of Stagecoach driver Gary Brown.
Money raised at the event will go to a charity chosen by Gary’s family. Gary passed away on January 31 after contracting covid.
The event will have 28 players in seven groups for a Ryder Cup style competition.
There have been many donations from local businesses around Thanet including Elsewhere Margate, Royal Harbour Brasserie Ramsgate, Ramrock Records, The Swan Westgate and Westgate Golf Club.
Stagecoach staff member Barry Sion said: “We are doing this as we lost a good friend and work colleague to Covid 19.
Stagecoach Thanet is supplying T-shirts for the day. The teams will also be named after two drivers who died from cancer over the last year.”
QEQM Hospital League of Friends
Thanks to the kindness and generosity of our donors and fundraisers our charity continues to support our local hospital. Recent examples include the funding of:
An Ultrasound Machine in Rainbow Children’s Ward used to locate blood vessels. In expressing the ward’s gratitude Children’s Advanced Clinical Practitioner Katherine Forwood said: “We’re delighted with this piece of equipment. As a team we’re now able to perform ultrasound-guided cannulation and venepuncture on the children that have proved difficult to cannulate or take bloods. This machine is able to offer the accuracy we didn’t have manually, which in turn makes the procedure much less traumatic for the children and their families.”
Two specialist Rise & Recliner Chairs for the Discharge Lounge. Francesca King, Lead Tissue Viability Nurse Specialist, said: “These chairs are making a real difference – increasing patients’ comfort, helping to maintain their dignity and making their last few hours in hospital before returning home more pleasurable.”
Donations can be made or fundraising facilitated online at www.justgiving.com/leagueoffriendsofqeqmhospital and more information about our charity is available on our Facebook page or our website www.ekhuft.nhs.uk/lof-QEQM
RNLI Ramsgate
The RNLI Ramsgate Shop will be re-opening from April f13 or three days a week as before the recent lockdown. Please ensure you wear a face mask and sanitise your hands before entering the shop.
Unfortunately the RNLI Broadstairs Kiosk & the RNLI Margate Shop are still closed.
Celsia Stud Minster
Celsia Stud animal rescue based in Minster is in urgent need of coops, hutches and small sheds or kids play houses. We only have a small budget and are currently almost completely self funded, awaiting registration for a non profit organisation. I don’t drive due to epilepsy so will need time to organise transport. We have an urgent arrival next week and desperately need to organise a house for him (large rooster) and we urgently need a small shed for some ducks and something suitable for 3 large pigs. Please message if you can help.
Find Celsia Stud on facebook here
Thanet u3a
Despite all the difficulties of the last year, local charity, Thanet u3a is alive and well, running a growing selection of activities online. Jacqui Wellbrook, who became chair in April last year, said that it was a simple decision to either adapt, or to close until members could meet in person again.
We are an organisation run completely by volunteers, who believe in lifelong learning, so technology became the next part of the learning process. Our national organisation, u3a Trust, offered tutorials and guides, we provided some “hand holding” and practice using video tools to deliver talks and meet with others. Courses have included Women Film Makers, The Art of the Album Cover, Spanish, Geology and Modernism in Art to name but a few.
Many of our 400 plus members wrote of their lockdown experiences in our quarterly newsletter.
Thanet u3a member, Kathy said, Thanet u3a has contributed to my sanity during this dreadful lockdown and all of last year. I have loved the online meetings and recently, the wonderful geology course, thank you so much.”
u3a is a national movement which supports people in their third age to continue their learning and interests in an informal environment. With over 450,000 members and 1000+ u3as across the country there will be a something for everyone. You can get a taste of what we do from our national website: www.u3a.org.uk and from the local website for Thanet u3a at www.U3asites.org.uk/thanet
Recent u3a national research – Learning Not Lonely – demonstrated the impact of the movement on wellbeing in later life in terms of confidence, combatting loneliness, feeling supported in new communities, learning new skills and perhaps, most important of all, feeling valued and enjoying life.
To find out more, try some taster activities or join Thanet u3a, find us on Facebook or email [email protected].
Membership enquiries tel. 07519718301
Martha Trust
“Out of Lockdown” heroes Stewart Brown and Scott Jackson are taking on a 75 mile challenge to raise vital funds for local charity Martha Trust, which is based in Hacklinge, on Sunday, May 22.
Like all charities, the pandemic hit the small charity hard, with most of their fundraising events cancelled in 2020 and their annual Car Challenge sadly cancelled in 2021 due to the uncertainty in Europe with Covid19.
Stewart and Scott will be covering the 75 miles in just 12 hours. The challenge starts from Dover Castle at 7am where they will cycle 55 miles through St Margaret’s into Kingsdown, through Deal and up to the Viking Ship at Ramsgate. A stop on the way back at Betteshanger Park will complete the 55 miles.
They will then get a lift to Folkestone Leisure Centre where they will swim a mile before walking the 19 miles back from Folkestone along the coastal route to The Kings Head in Deal where they will celebrate their challenge with a pint and a get together outside.
This will be a huge challenge for them as both Stewart had a kidney transplant which he donated to his friend and Scott has a metal plate in his knee.
Stewart said: “The idea came about from me sending Scott a text to say I needed something to focus on. It stemmed from after my transplant when the doctors told me that I needed to stay fit. It is very easy to get lazy and stop getting fit without focus and because we supported Martha in the past, we wanted to support again.”
The two fundraisers are no stranger to fundraising and have supported Martha Trust back in 2016 where they completed a walk from Bognor Regis to Deal and they raised nearly £400.
Scott said: “I really struggled with my mental health through lockdown. I now work at Martha Trust and I see on a daily basis how much support our residents need. Working for Martha really gives me a focus to wake up in the morning, knowing I am making a difference in their lives – it has helped me mentally too. I have undertaken the John O Groats – Lands End cycling challenge in the past plus done a few walking challenges so we though let’s do both and add in a swim too!”
Fundraising & Events Officer Kerry Banks BEM said: “We are incredibly grateful to Stew and Scott for wanting to undertake another challenge for our guys and girls at Martha Trust – their dedication to our charity is brilliant! I will be joining them for the last 10 miles of their challenge so if you see us on the way, please give us a wave and we will have donation pots with us too! It would be great to see people back outside the Kings Head to welcome them home.”
If you would like to sponsor their challenge, please visit their page at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/scottstew75
