Fundraisers for Beaulieu House enjoyed their most successful ever Isle of Wight Festival – raising an incredible £7,099.06 for the Newport residential and overnight respite centre for disabled children.
The 12-strong volunteers from Beaulieu Respite covered all four days selling their trademark bees, bee sunglasses, wristbands and bopper and wing sets.
They were also joined by Gary the Gorilla carrying a man in a cage who provided a great photo opportunity for festival goers in exchange for an optional donation.
Though regulars at the festival courtesy of the organisers, the money raised this year by Beaulieu Respite was the most ever collected by them.
Wake: Our best ever figure
Tony Wake, Chairman of Beaulieu Respite, who bears an uncanny resemblance to the man trapped by Gary the Gorilla, said,
“We’re absolutely over the moon with this figure, our best ever!
“The record breaking amount was down to both the hard work of our small band of volunteers but also the generosity of people at the festival. We did have a lot of fun too but the main thing was raising so much for such a good cause.
“We would also like to thank John and Caroline Giddings along with their colleagues Flo Petri and Dave Steele who made everything run so smoothly for us, even down to security letting Gary the Gorilla have breaks behind the scenes.”
The charity is solely run by volunteers to “make our little ones lives that bit nicer”, so there are very few overheads meaning nearly all of the profits raised go directly to Beaulieu House to support day trips to theme parks, toys, specialised equipment, computers and larger projects such as a new playground currently being ordered.
News shared by Tony on behalf of Beaulieu House. Ed
