John welcomed Professor Michael Almond, Deputy Lieutenant of Essex, representing His Majesty the King, Commanding Officer Simon Tayor and the 2393 (Billericay) Air Training Cadets, as well as Jim Shrubb the Billericay Town Cryer, and thanked them for their support of the Celebration evening.
John Baron said:
“I confirmed last year that I wished to continue my involvement with The Fun Walk Trust charity that we established in 2002, and which has since raised over £1,635,000 for local charities and good causes.”
“To be part of the Fun Walk over 22 years is a great honour. It represents the best of our communities in working together and marries a very strong charitable and entrepreneurial ethos by encouraging businesses to donate into the bonus pot which in turn encourages charities to do even more.”
John thanked the organisations present for all the work they do in the local community during the year, and said “Tonight we can celebrate that as well”.
In terms of Fundraising, John was happy to announce that this year’s event raised over £100,000 including the bonus, which this year was set at 30%. This total is better than recent years’ efforts and the bonus amount along with Gift Aid allows charities to add more than 50% to the money raised directly from their sponsored walks.
John said
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank our generous Bonus Pot sponsors including Brown & Carroll (London), Sanctuary Housing, Greater Anglia, Tunnelcraft, Butyl Products Group, IFE Global Logistics, Mr Barrie Stone and a number of other individuals.”
There was also a special mention of Ram Goyal of Hallmark Care Homes, who was present at the event, given he has been a major supporter of the Fun Walk over the past decade.
John thanked the ‘Home team’ for making things run smoothly including the Fun Walk Trustees, Sandra, Christine, and Sylvia as well as Simon Licence from Hunt Smee Accountants, and the BBW CVS team led by Chief Officer Simon Johnson, who help provide the administration for the Fun Walk Trust.
He concluded by saying “If you know of any other good causes or charities, please ask them to get in touch with us for next year’s event.”
