Neighbouring Rotary Clubs join forces to help fund local and international causes

As well as the many local charities and community projects who gain financially from Rotary fundraising events, all the local Rotary clubs in the area also raise funds throughout the year to support international projects.

This year the clubs in Denton and Audenshaw, Dukinfield and Stalybridge, Tameside and Hyde joined forces and with help from the Rotary District 1285 matching grant fund they were able to support The Oakdale School Sensory Room Appeal in Dukinfield and the Oasis Relief Borehole Project in Lusaka, Zambia with donations of £2000 each.

Oakdale School is a school for children with severe learning difficulties, profound and multiple learning difficulties and Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Rachel Hindle and Tina Tray from the school attended at special evening on 18^th October hosted by Dukinfield and Stalybridge Rotary Club at Stamford Golf Club during which the Rotary Clubs jointly presented them with a cheque for £2,000.

Accepting the grant on behalf of the school, Head teacher, Tina Tray, said, “The funding will help the school to purchase an interactive music system for the sensory suite.”

Our picture shows the cheque presentation at Stamford Golf club to the Oakdale School representatives by Rotary Assistant Governor Swati Mukherjee and the club presidents from each of the four clubs.

The other project supported by the four clubs was Oasis Relief, which has been sinking boreholes in Zambia for the last eleven years.  The donation from the Rotary Clubs is already helping to provide a much needed borehole machine for use in a small village, giving the inhabitants access to fresh drinking water for the first time.

The evening on 18th October continued with a presentation from a locally based charity, Gift of a Wedding, which Dukinfield and Stalybridge Club had arranged in order to promote the charity and raise awareness of its work amongst members of the Rotary Clubs and local communities.  The Gift of a Wedding charity is based in Oakdale Lodge, Stalybridge and was founded by Patricia Harrison.

The charity aims to bring joy, love and happiness to those with a terminal or life-shortening illness by gifting wedding services and vow renewals, supported by the generous UK wedding and hospitality industry and talented volunteers.  Since its inception in 2012 the charity has gifted over 180 weddings. 

Patricia's moving presentation to the Rotary club members and guests illustrated the significance of the work the charity does. She showed a montage of some 30 to 40 photographs of gifted weddings before sharing with the audience that only 3 of the terminally ill Brides / Bridegrooms were still alive.  Everyone had tears in their eyes as they watched a video of a recent wedding where the groom had only a few days to live.  For more information on the charity visit their webpage at www.giftofawedding.org.

To find out more information on Dukinfield and Stalybridge Rotary Club, the combination of community action and fellowship that it offers, the charities the club supports and how to join simply follow us on facebook, explore this website or call us on 07730586269.

If you would like to find out more about your local Rotary club in the area visit the Rotary GB&I website at www.rotarygbi.org.