The CKDCF would like to give an enormous thank-you to everyone who came to the 18th annual October Fundraising Weekend, as well as all of those who sponsored our fundraisers!
This year, we celebrated 17th anniversary of the inception of the CKDCF.
The CKDCF fundraising weekend began on Friday evening with a night of delicious food, catch-ups and musical entertainment. As with every year, an exhibition of memorabilia and photographs were available for guests to look through. The night was a great opportunity for like-minded CKDCF friends and supporters to come together to celebrate the charity’s work.
As always, the evening kicked off with a delicious hot buffet dinner and opening speech from our Founder and Chair of Trustees, Francis Dunnery, who thanked everyone involved in our work. We also heard from Leon, a young boy with sight loss, who enjoys music lessons thanks to funding granted by the CKDCF. Guests heard from three more speakers: Julie-Anne Kelly, from Together We Can Fundraising; Gill Wykes, from Cumbria Cerebral Palsy; and Marie Scott, from the West Cumbria Society for the Blind. Mrs Wykes was presented with a £3,000 cheque from the CKDCF to fund a support worker for children suffering from cerebral palsy.
The following morning, fundraisers woke up early to make the journey to the annual ‘Joy in the Rain’ Sponsored Walk around Loweswater. Everyone successfully made the 6km walk around the lake, with some even having a go on the rope-swing on the shore. Calderwood House, a local social enterprise and homeless hostel, were on hand to prepare walkers with food and drinks.
That evening, Francis Dunnery took to the stage of Egremont Market Hall with a number of special guests. Francis played songs from the It Bites album, The Big Lad In The Windmill. A great night was had by all – both local and international fundraisers. A silent auction and raffle on Saturday evening raised over £1,000.
We look forward to seeing fundraisers, new and old, at next year’s October Event (23rd & 24th October 2020).
Sunday 20th October 2019