Rotary club hands over £17,500 to charities
The Rotary Club of Blairgowrie presented two major charities, Cancer Research UK and CHAS, the Scottish children’s hospices organisation, with cheques for £8,750 each last week.
The money was raised during the Blairgowrie Rotarians’ Drive-It Day classic car tour, held in April.
Nearly 70 classic cars, dating from the 1930s right up to the present day, drove a 120-mile route through east and Highland Perthshire after setting out from Blairgowrie Golf Club, amassing a record £17,500 in sponsorship money.
And according to the Rotary Club, this is the highest-ever total raised by any Drive-It Day event held in the UK — the average raised this year being £7,000.
Colin Stewart, who chaired the organising committee, said: “It was a great team effort by everyone in Blairgowrie Rotary Club and we are delighted by the results of this, our first Drive-It Day event.
“We have set ourselves a very high bar for 2018 but we intend to match or surpass it.”
Representatives from the two charities expressed their gratitude to all those involved in raising the money.
Alison Rennie, local community fundraiser for CHAS, said: “This is an absolutely tremendous amount that the Rotary Club have raised and everyone has been fantastic.
“Their commitment to the whole event has been above and beyond and they should be really proud of their effort, it’s totally outstanding.
“As well as raising so much money the day itself was great fun and we are very grateful for the support of the Rotary Club of Blairgowrie.”
And local fundraising manager for Cancer Research UK, Dorothy Rodger, added: “It was wonderful to work with such an inspirational and well-organised group such as the Rotarians to bring this event to Blairgowrie for the first time.
“To have raised such a phenomenal amount of money for Cancer Research UK and CHAS is just amazing.
“On behalf of Cancer Research UK I would like to thank the Rotary very much for all their fantastic efforts.”