Efrar record
A TOTAL of 935,000TL has been raised to fight cancer in the TRNC since 2011, thanks to charity events organised under the banner of the Esentepe Fun, Run and Ramble (Efrar), it was revealed on Monday.
The amount collected by Efrar over the last eight years was disclosed when outgoing chairman Mary Watson and committee members presented a cheque for 233,453TL — the record result of the last nine months of fundraising — to Raziye Kocaismail, the founding chairman of the Help Those With Cancer Association (Tulips).
“Efrar committee members have always aimed to raise as much money as possible while having fun,” said Mrs Watson, who was accompanied at the presentation by committee members Sue Steel, Keith Rickman, Seda Djemal Avcan, Pam Kennedy, Jude Vizzard, Roy Haskett and Art Watson.
Efrar volunteers have dedicated their time and energy to supporting Tulips and cancer patients since the late George Roper and Alex Kennedy established the first fun run in 2011.
Mrs Watson thanked all event sponsors, particularly the Carrington Group and those who had made donations over the years.
“I am also grateful to the Esentepe community,” she said. “It is a delightful area to live in as people there are so willing to help with fundraising.
“I would like to say a special thank-you to the Efrar team. Over the past two years, three of them have battled cancer and two are still undergoing treatment. Regardless of that, they have battled on and delivered a fabulous result.
“However I, together with Sue and Art, made a decision earlier in the year to retire. It is too easy to keep doing the same thing each year and we felt that we needed new ideas and creativity to move forward.
“I always worry that we will never quite reach the total for the previous year but I am pleased to say that, thanks to so many people, we have had another record year of fundraising and we know that it will help an enormous number of cancer patients.
“We all hope the fun run will be picked up by some enthusiastic volunteers and continue to grow and help those suffering from cancer.”