As the HR Manager, I
would usually organise a
collection for a
colleague's wedding
gift, but on this type
of occasion - and
bearing in mind
Nick’s strong
association with CRY
- I suggested we
undertake a few months
of fundraising instead.
The
staff wanted to arrange
a celebration meal prior
to the wedding so that
we could take Nick and
Eve out, as they would
do for us on such an
occasion. This gave us
the perfect opportunity
to present them with
what we were hoping to
be a very big
cheque for their
favourite charity,
in
honour of their
wedding.
Without Nick and Eve’s
knowledge, staff members
donated books, CDs,
DVDs, grew plants and
baked cakes that we
could sell. We sold old
vacuum cleaners and
mobile phones. One staff
member, David Parfitt,
got a new bicycle and
sold his old one for the
fund. Another colleague,
Mick Cornwall, ran the
London Marathon.
We also ran a Christmas
Raffle thanks to a
generous donation from
ASAP Computers of
Pangbourne, who gave us
some very expensive
whisky and port to use
as a prize.
But the biggest event
and contribution came
from the very brave and
daring Keith Parnell,
who performed a tandem
parachute jump
(right) and
contributed over 60% of
the total amount raised.
This was done by writing
to our company’s
suppliers and other
ServiceMasters asking
for sponsorship for
Keith and he also
approached his work
colleagues and friends.
The evening of the
Wedding Celebration meal
arrived, where, with the
help of a PowerPoint
presentation and a
laptop, we revealed to
Nick and Eve the whole
story of what we had
done, how we had done it
and finally, how much we
had raised.
The total exceeded our
hopes and reached
£2,058.
Nick and Eve had no idea
what had been going on
and were delighted and
touched by our efforts.
That was the icing on
the cake for us and a
great night was had by
all. Good food, a few
drinks, great company
and a big fat
cheque! Perfect!
Shirley Ellis
|
Nick and Eve at
the Wedding
Celebration meal |
Daring
parachutist
Keith Parnell |
