In its 20th year of collecting for Children in Need, Stone Rotary Club is hoping to bring its fundraising up to £50,000.
Friday 18th November will be the 20th time members – as well as friends and supporters – of the Rotary Club have turned out with their collection buckets for this worthy cause.
The club has been promised that its 2016 Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) student (Charlie Hiscox, who lives in Stone) and a number of her sixth form colleagues from Stone’s Alleyne’s Academy will be helping out.
“With their help, we have every chance of breaking that £50,000 figure,” said Rotarian Tim Joyce, Past President of the Rotary Club of Stone and District.
“I think if we can take that total up to £50,000 as a result of our efforts in the 20th year, we will be very proud.” said Tim.
“For the first few years of our collections members dressed up as highwaymen with black capes, masks and tricorn hats to challenge passing motorists. More recently, we merely don our hi-viz Rotary tabards.
“Each year we put signs up on the Christchurch Way lamp posts to remind motorists to bring money with them on the Friday – and to warn them of our presence. Everybody has been very generous every year. If we can do just a little bit better than we did in 2015, then we’ll bring the total past that magic £50,000.”
He said that in 2012 the BBC kindly loaned the club one of their official ‘Pudsey’ costumes. “Pudsey must have liked visiting Stone,” added Tim, “because he has returned every year since and in addition to his regular school visits he will be out and about on Friday supporting our street collection.”
