Young fundraisers treated to afternoon tea with Mayor and Mayoress of Rochdale

A group of children and young people who access services at Rochdale Connections Trust were treated to afternoon tea with the Mayor and Mayoress of Rochdale on Wednesday (11 March) as a ‘thank you’ for their fundraising efforts for the Mayor’s charity.

The group sourced donations of sweets, chocolate, cakes and biscuits from a wide array of local traders and individuals who support the charity. During their half term holidays, they set about packaging the goodies up, adding their own positive messages on the tags used to seal the packs.

They arranged to sell their wares with stalls, kindly provided at Gordon Riggs Garden Centre and the Wheatsheaf Shopping Centre, as well as going into Fashion Corner, where Jim Hopkinson (Head of Cared for Children) had arranged for them to hold a stall for social workers and other staff to buy some treats and goodies too. The fundraiser was a huge success with £380 raised.

When the Mayor, Councillor Billy Sheerin, heard what the group had done, he immediately arranged for them to join him and the Mayoress at the town hall for afternoon tea.

 

 

 

 

The Mayor told the group it had been one of his best engagements and one of the children told him that the afternoon had ‘been more than they could have ever dreamed of’.

Bev Place, Business Development Manager at RCT said: “We are one of the Mayor’s selected charities this year and were keen that our children and young people appreciate the range of sources that small local charities, like Rochdale Connections Trust, rely on for funding and that they played a part in helping to generate some of those monies.

“The Mayor and Mayoress were wonderful hosts and really took time to get to know the young people and how they had gone about raising the monies. Everyone had a wonderful time with singing and lots of laughter.

“We would like to extend our sincere thanks to the Mayor and Mayoress who ensured the children and young people enjoyed a wonderful experience that will stay with them throughout their lives.”