Wanted: volunteers to cycle across Madagascar
Transaid is seeking 40 volunteers to cycle almost 500km through Madagascar in support of its life-saving work in Africa. Cycle Madagascar, a challenging nine-day trip in June 2012, will see participants ride across the north east of the island, through remote villages, paddy fields, tropical fruit plantations and along coastal trails. Funds raised will go to the charity’s Professional Driver Training Project, which aims to improve driving safety standards in sub-Saharan Africa. Details from www.transaid.org.
Stobart and Malcolm
Stobart Group and the Malcolm Group have joined forces to raise money for Cancer Research UK. An Eddie Stobart refrigerated trailer hit the road with a special Malcolm Group livery adorning
the side. The other side lists 75 names of individuals who have each pledged a £1,000 financial contribution to the charity.
In December last year, Stobart Group supported Ronan Keating’s Emeralds & Ivy Ball where it presented the Marie Keating Foundation and Cancer Research UK with a cheque for £151,700 – one pound for every mile a nominated truck had covered in 2010.
Attendees at the event were given the opportunity to make a financial donation in return for their name listed on the side of the refrigerated trailer for a full year. At the end of the evening, Andrew Malcolm, chief executive of the Malcolm Group, made a further donation to brand the remaining side and the rear. The trailer will operate on the Stobart Chilled network. The total mileage covered by the truck during 2011 will be converted to pounds and presented to the charity.
Disabled fundraiser
Briggs Equipment has raised more than £500 for Dogs for the Disabled, which will support the training of assistance dogs. The event was a culmination of a week of activities including
drawing and colouring, favourite dog “pin-ups” and a competition to name one of the charity’s new trainee pups.
Fortec raises £3,000
Fortec members have raised more than £3,000 for a new baby hospice which is soon to open near Coventry. Zoe’s Place will be only the third of its kind in the UK and will offer care to babies with life limiting and life threatening illnesses. Fortec chief Neil Hodgson said: “Zoe’s Place is doing something quite special for families whose children face lifethreatening illnesses.”
Emergency relief
World Vision, Agility and Advance Aid have formed a three-way partnership to enable African produced emergency relief goods to be provided to assist in African emergencies – a first of its kind.
The aim is to reverse a trend whereby all emergency relief goods have been sent to Africa from the Far East, sometime seven from Europe and North America. Advance Aid is supplying World Vision with 5,000 Emergency Kits that are 100 per cent locally-purchased and more than 80 per cent African manufactured.
The partners believe that this is the first time that a largely African kit has been supplied for use in African emergencies.
Agility will also be working with World Vision Kenya to distribute the emergency kits – in forty-foot containers provided by Advance Aid – to World Vision offices across the country.
Mansell at the wheel
UPS has launched Road Code, a community programme designed to promote road safety among young people, in partnership with the charity UK Youth.
Through the partnership, UPS volunteers will conduct monthly road safety seminars at UK Youthaffiliated centres across the country, providing young people with classroom-based instruction
and time behind the wheel of a driving simulator.
Former motor racing world champion Nigel Mansell was at the launch to see how the simulator sessions help young people better understand the dangers of the road.
UPS presented UK Youth with a cheque for $200,000 (£125,000) from The UPS Foundation.
