Maidenhead Bridge Rotary hosted a One Big Thank You Event on Sunday 25th July to recognise all the amazing volunteers who stepped forward from the community to help them deliver their Covid-19 Response Project over the last 18 months. Held at Moor Hall in Cookham guests were treated to a variety of delicious cakes including chocolate cake, lemon drizzle and the most popular of all carrot cake! The event was primarily to thank club members and volunteers for being part of the project which saw more than 120 people join forces to support more than 150 households with errands such as shopping, prescription collections, dog walking and befriending. The amazing team ran more than 1,245 errands which equated to over 2,500 hours given in service. In addition the club also provided weekly food parcels to 23 families who lost access to free school meals throughout the pandemic. Lisa Hunter, event organiser and Covid-19 Project Manager, commented “It was so lovely first of all to see people face-to-face, I hadn’t realised how much I’d missed seeing people! Secondly it was so special to be able to thank our wonderful volunteers who enabled us to support our community, putting faces to names that I’d been emailing or calling for months. It was a perfect afternoon.” “This project proved the power of Rotary, the difference we can make to improve lives when we work together, use our skills and knowledge and take action to get the job done. It’s one reason why I’m proud to be a Rotarian and today I couldn’t be prouder of everyone in the room. Thank you for being superheroes.” Lisa continued. Also at the event outgoing President Victoria Williams presented incoming President Nas Parkes with the ceremonial chain of office and a special gift was handed over to Victoria in recognition of the amazing job she did leading the club over the last year. If you’d like to get involved in local projects, want to volunteer, raise funds for charity or simply meet new people, make friends and expand your horizons, then get in touch with Maidenhead Bridge Rotary today and discover what opportunities await you.
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You're Invited!
If you're not a member of the club yet, then we’d also like to extend an invite to you and your friends to join us at one of our fun upcoming events to find out more about what we do and how you can get involved. Remember we’re a very relaxed, flexible and friendly club so you don’t have to commit huge amounts of time to get involved. It’s a great way to meet new people, try out new activities and give something back to the local community. Check out the list of upcoming events on the back page of the newsletter, if you’d like to join us get in touch today. We hope you enjoy reading it and if you, or anyone you know, would like to get involved with any of our volunteering opportunities, or attend one of our meetings, please do get in touch; and feel free to share our newsletter with others too. This year’s Rotary Boundary Walk, which took place in a new ‘Bubble’ format due to Covid-19 restrictions, has been declared a resounding success by organisers. Nearly 200 people took part in the 12-mile charity sponsored walk over three weeks in October, raising more than £7,000 for a range of good causes. The event takes its name from the tradition of ‘beating the bounds’ - an annual walk around the boundary of the old Maidenhead Borough – and follows the same route. Usually it sees about 600 participants setting out on a single Sunday in October to walk a fully marshalled route with checkpoints and road crossings manned by Rotarians. But this year, due to social distancing rules, walkers were given a three-week window to complete a non-marshalled route in ‘bubbles’ of up to six people, such as families or charity groups. “We were absolutely delighted with how the ‘Bubble’ format worked,” said organising committee chairman Jim Howles. “With the Boundary Walk impossible to run in the normal way, having 200 people still take part and raise so much money for charity in such a difficult year is a fantastic result. “Lots of charities rely on it as a major fundraiser and we were determined to find a way for it to go ahead despite the restrictions. “We’d like to say a huge thank-you to all the walkers who took part and to the Louis Baylis Trust and Shanly Foundation for their support.” The Boundary Walk is jointly organised by Maidenhead Rotary Club and Maidenhead Bridge Rotary Club. They hope that by next year it will be able to return in its usual format but are thinking about introducing a longer window for walkers who are unable to take part in the main event.
You're Invited!
Remember, if you're not a member of the club yet, then we’d also like to extend an invite to you and your friends to join us at one of our fun upcoming meetups to find out more about what we do and how you can get involved. Remember we’re a very relaxed, flexible and friendly club so you don’t have to commit huge amounts of time to get involved. It’s a great way to meet new people, try out new activities and give something back to the local community. Check out the list of upcoming events on the back page of the newsletter, if you’d like to join us get in touch today. Maidenhead Boundary Walk – one of the town’s most important charity fundraising events - will be going ahead in a new ‘Bubble’ format due to Covid-19 restrictions, organisers have announced. The Rotary-run sponsored walk usually sees hundreds of walkers tracing the boundary of the old Maidenhead Borough on a single Sunday in October. But this year, thanks to social distancing rules, things will be a bit different. Instead participants can walk any time during a three-week period from Sunday, October 4 to Sunday, October 25, either on their own or in ‘bubbles’ such as families or charity groups. They can do all or just part of the 12-mile route, which is already clearly signposted, starting and finishing at any point along the way. And instead of the traditional method of signing in at marshalled checkpoints to get their completion certificates, walkers will be asked to fill out a post-walk form and take photos at key locations along the way. Everyone taking part is urged to raise sponsorship, and organisers say the Bubble Boundary Walk is the perfect opportunity for charities to replace vital funding lost due to Covid-19. Organising committee chairman Jim Howles said: “We were determined to find a way for the Boundary Walk to go ahead despite Covid-19 The ‘Bubble’ format means charities and community groups will still be able to raise much-needed funds at a time when so many are in desperate straits because of the impact of the lockdown. “The Bubble Boundary Walk is a ready-made sponsored event. Charities just need to mobilise their supporters to raise sponsorship money and walk the route – it’s that simple. It’s open to walkers of all ages and abilities and after months of lockdown it’s the chance to get out into the fresh air for a good cause.” There is a registration fee - £2.50 for adults, £1 for children and £15 for groups of 15 or more – which covers admin costs including route maps and completion certificates. All sponsorship raised goes to the walker’s chosen charity. The event, which is jointly organised by Maidenhead Rotary Club and Maidenhead Bridge Rotary Club, is also supported by the Louis Baylis (Maidenhead Advertiser) Charitable Trust and the Shanly Foundation. Full details about the walk and how to register can be found at www.boundarywalk.org.uk ...it's the year to make it your resolution!
Here are nine reasons why volunteering is the New Year’s Resolution to make in 2020 and how getting involved with Maidenhead Bridge Rotary can help you keep it!
If you want some of the above, then we’d love to invite you to one of our events so you can find out more about Rotary, meet new people and get involved. Find out what's coming up here... It was a race to the finish line at the annual Reindeer Race in the Nicholsons Centre on Saturday.
Organised by Maidenhead Bridge Rotary Club for the seventh year running, the festive, fun-filled event pulled in the crowds to watch competitors wind toy reindeer and sleighs across the finish line. Races lasted approximately 5 minutes each and brought lots of laughter and festive fun to the masses. Shoppers also got to meet Bruno, the mascot from the charity Hearing Dogs for the Deaf, where all money raised at the event will be donated. James Berkeley, Rotarian and event organiser, commented, “The dog mascots definitely help to pull in the crowds and to see the joy on children’s faces as they rush to give them a hug is priceless. Thank you to the generosity of shoppers the day raised over £150 for the charity, which we are thrilled about”. If you’d like more information about Maidenhead Bridge Rotary please email events@maidenheadbridgerotary.org.uk or call Lisa on 07876 341334. Find out more about the club at www.maidenheadbridgerotary.org.uk And what a bath that was! As the lyrics go, ..a-splishin' and a-splashin', reelin' with the feelin' movin' and a-groovin' rockin' and a-rollin', yeah, yeah.. That pretty much sums up my experience at the Annual Swimarathon that took place at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead on the 6th of January. The atmosphere was electrifying, the smell of the chlorine, the calm water and the sound of flip-flops; an all, too familiar setting; flashbacks from when I was in my early teens, when I used to swim for the Kyrenia Nautical Club. I must admit, I did not pace myself on my first 2 lengths (1 circuit) which meant that it took me a while to get my heart rate back in check, but we made good progress at the end. With Lisa on the helm it’s difficult not to perform, and perform we did, with 80 lengths between the 4 of us in 50 minutes. We moved, we grooved, we rocked and we rolled and then we realised how unfit we are… Yet what a day, we had fun while at the same time aiding a philanthropic cause, raising more than £500. This is a highly recommended event for all of you swimmers (or floaters) out there of all ages...so I hope to see more of you joining the team next year! It was a race to the finish line at the annual Reindeer Race in the Nicholsons Centre on Saturday. Organised by Maidenhead Bridge Rotary Club for the fifth year running, the festive, fun-filled event pulled in the crowds to watch competitors wind toy reindeers and sleighs across the finishing line. Races lasted approximately 5 minutes each and brought lots of laughter and fun to the masses. Shoppers also go to meet Bruno and Patch, mascots from the charity Hearing Dogs for the Deaf, where all money raised at the event will be donated. Lisa Hunter, Rotarian, commented, “The dog mascots definitely help to pull in the crowds and to see the joy on children’s faces as they rush to give them a hug is priceless”. “Thank you to the generosity of shoppers the day raised over £225 for the charity, which we are thrilled about”, she continued. If you’d like more information about Maidenhead Bridge Rotary please email events@maidenheadbridgerotary.org.uk or call Lisa on 07876 341334. As a group we have a number of skills that could be of use to smaller charities that maybe only have a volunteer group to draw on. We all joined Rotary to make a difference, experience new things and develop ourselves personally, so we saw an opportunity to match our skill sets with these smaller organisations and offer them development. The plan is simple, charities contact us via our Pimp My Charity website with an idea of the help they need and we provide a free 3 hour session with the best suited people in the club. By the end of the session we will have provided new direction to that charity so they can breathe new life into their cause. If you know some groups that can benefit, or want to volunteer your skills, please have a look at the website - www.maidenheadbridgerotary.org.uk/pimpmycharity |
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