Christmas Sleigh Collections 2012
HO! HO! HO! Help Us Spread Christmas cheer…
7 years on and The Coventry Rotary Club are starting this year’s collection with a bang! Santa will be cruising around in his brand new sleigh (he’s obviously been a good boy all year round)! The existing Sleigh has been upgraded with new sound, lighting and a complete redecoration. In the spirit of Christmas the upgrade brought together Coventry’s business community.
The first to pledge their support were Listers Toyota Coventry, having supported the sleigh for the past 5 years they were proud to yet again provide a Toyota Hilux to tow the sleigh. Kieran Teeboon Centre Principal from Listers Toyota Coventry said “I am so pleased to be helping the Rotary Club tow santa around Coventry and raise money for such great causes. We’re so pleased to be part of the community”
Then followed Harris Sign Group, they offered to redecorate the sleigh, they have spent 4 weeks stripping it down and repainting it, then to finish it off new signage. This totalled a contribution of over £1,000. Derek from HSG said “were delighted to support the Rotary Club and their Christmas Sleigh, my staff have enjoyed helping out and are delighted with the end result”
The lighting was next and Nigel at Warmmead did not need much convincing when asked if he could help us with the lighting. In total they have provided £400 worth of new modern Low voltage LED lighting to brighten up the sleigh.
In addition to this, the Rotarians have been working tirelessly to not only gain the support outlined above but to also help with the improvements. Jason Gage the club President from Coventry Jubilee has combined his expertise with that of Harold Smart at Coventry Rotary Club to bring power and sound to the sleigh. However when testing the sound it became apparent the speakers from the previous years had blown and therefore we had to hunt for some new ones. Kirit from Nyanza came to the rescue and offered to supply £200 worth of speakers.
Sainsbury’s at Canley have also offered their support. They have given us a prime opportunity to display the sleigh and santa at their store, to give their shoppers seasons greetings. They have pledged to fuel Santa by providing the petrol for the sleigh during the collection.
Last year we raised just short of £8,000 over 9 nights collecting from the streets of Coventry, Cannon Park shopping centre and Tesco’s Cross Point. With the improvements made this year we hope to be able to increase our collections to give even more to our local charities.
Warren Offer, the co-organiser of the sleigh with Kate Pearson from the Rotaract Club said “we’re delighted with the support from the local community each year, not only do they give generously, they are so pleased to see Father Christmas coming down their streets”, he added, “ with the extra support that the local business have shown as well I think it is a phenomenal show of the true community spirit that this City has”.
The Charities that we are supporting this year are The Warwickshire & Northamptonshire Air Ambulance, Myton Hospice plus other charities that are supported by the Rotary & Rotaract Clubs.
Warren added: "We have a big task this year with supporting two major charities for the Coventry area, we need Coventry to give generously so that we can make the biggest donation possible".
Your first opportunity to see the newly refurbished sleigh and Santa will be at the Christmas Light Switch on in Broadgate on the 18th November. Warren added “to be asked to switch the lights on is a true honour, it is a testament to the hard work that goes in to the sleigh that it is now recognised by the City Council”.
The Rotarians will take to the streets from December 11th, starting in Cheylesmore. Areas that we will be collecting on are listed below, for full details of routes that will be covered you can visit our website or follow us on Facebook. The areas and streets that we are to collect in will be listed both on Touch Radio & Coventry Telegraph on the day of collecting (This is to be confirmed but sounds good).
If we are not collecting in your area or if we have missed you, you can go on line to www.rotaryincoventry.co.uk , at the bottom of the page we have a donate now button. Alternatively, you can make a donation to Briant Curtaining in Earlsdon, 147 Albany Road, Coventry CV5 6ND, cheques should be payable to The Rotary Club of Coventry Jubilee, please write on the reverse that it is for the 2012 Christmas Collections.