Charity: 100-mile bike ride raises £6,500; Property Trust makes first donations; Digital agency helps homeless charity; and more

CYCLISTS taking part in a 100-mile charity bike ride across Wharfedale have raised more than £6,500 for Marie Curie Cancer Care Hospice in Bradford.

In total 120 amateur cyclists took part in the ‘Wharfedale Ton’ challenge on June 10, which was organised by Yorkshire law firm Gordons, Lloyds Bank and audit, tax and consulting firm RSM.  The route stretched across Wharfedale from Ilkley to York and back again.

Gordons partner, Phil Paget, said: “We were delighted with the amount raised by those involved in the Wharfedale Ton and would like to thank all of our sponsors and congratulate everyone who took on all or part of the course. The feedback from the cyclists was excellent, with many people keen to sign up for next year’s ride so it was a huge success in its inaugural year.”

Sponsors of the Wharfedale Ton included Arena Group, Calder World of Travel, Roberts Mart & Co, Naylor Wintersgill, Reed Boardall, Craven Jewellers, 1825 Standard Life, Lishmans of Ilkley, the Riverside Hotel, Mercure Hotels, and OTE Sports Nutrition.

:::

THE Yorkshire Property Charitable Trust has made its first donations to local causes and is asking the region’s property community to put forward further recommendations of charities which should benefit from the long running charity football event.  

The first beneficiary was Candlelighters which received £5,000 for its children’s cancer ward at Leeds General Infirmary.  

Further donations have subsequently been made to Little Hiccups and the Right Choice Academy.  

Little Hiccups is a Leeds-based support group that has been set up by parents who have children with special needs. YPCT has donated almost £4,500 to enable the charity to purchase a Kangoo all terrain buggy and make it available to families for day trips and holidays.

The Right Choice Academy has recently been set up to provide young people who are experiencing difficulties to broaden their horizons and improve their futures. YPCT has kick started the charity with an initial donation of £3,000 to enable 14 under privileged children to experience a three-day sailing trip on a tall ship.

The Yorkshire Property Charity Football event has been confirmed for Thursday 15th September.

::::
 
ENJOY DIGITAL is strengthening its pro-bono third sector partnerships by delivering Leeds-based charity, Simon on the Streets, a new website to assist it in providing help to people in need across West Yorkshire.

Simon on the Streets is an independent charity which offers assistance and support to vulnerable people who are already or at risk of sleeping rough in Leeds, Huddersfield and Bradford.

The new website will enable the charity to continue making the public aware of the work its dedicated volunteers undertake on a daily basis. The updated design provides a flexible foundation, making it more user-friendly to engage new supporters and volunteers to get involved and provide donations.

Ed Gallagher, general manager for Simon on the Streets, said: “We were desperately in need of a new website to boost our engagement with our supporters and the wider public in order to improve our services for vulnerable people sleeping rough. We’re extremely grateful for Enjoy Digital’s ongoing generosity in supporting us. This new site will make a genuine impact to our work in helping to turn people’s lives around.”

:::

CYCLING retailer All Terrain Cycles, which has stores in Saltaire and Wetherby, is sponsoring the Sue Ryder Bronte Sportive which takes place on July 17.

The event, organised by Manorlands Hospice in Oxenhope, attracts up to 300 entrants every year and riders who sign up in advance will benefit from discounted entry fee of £20.

Entry to the sportive on the day costs £25 and all proceeds, including entrance fees and sponsorship, will be used to fund Sue Ryder’s care for people living with incurable illness in West Yorkshire.  

All Terrain Cycles is offering cycle related goodies in a prize draw for all riders who raise more than £50 of sponsorship.

Starting from Leeds City College’s Keighley Campus, the event is now in its seventh year and offers a choice of four rides of varying difficulty in the Pennines.  
As in the previous two years, the route takes in over 30 miles of the 2014 Grand Depart Yorkshire route.  

Participants can choose from a 23m ride for beginners which includes the cobbled Haworth Main Street and Penistone Hill made famous by the Tour; through to more challenging 54.5m and 71.5m routes; up to the 88m Bronte Monster route which is known to be one of the toughest tests for sportive riders in the UK.

“This is always a fantastic event and has become even more popular since the Grand Depart with cycling enthusiasts from Yorkshire and beyond turning out to tackle what is a challenging, but stunning route,” says Andrew Wood of Sue Ryder.  

“We are really grateful to All Terrain Cycles for their support and hope that the event will raise much-needed funds for our work here in West Yorkshire.”