Cheers to fundraiser for hospice
A Hamilton sports bar is under starter’s orders for the return of a charity fundraiser during one of the biggest weeks in the horse racing calendar.
Hamilton pub Mavrix is running a grand raffle during the four days of the Cheltenham festival, with some impressive prizes on offer and all proceeds going to St Andrew’s Hospice.
Prizes up for grabs include restaurant vouchers, whisky and football tickets – and staff and customers are hoping to beat last year’s total of £1200 raised for the Airdrie charity.
Visitors can watch races on the Quarry Street bar’s large screen and six TVS.
The festival started on Tuesday and runs until Friday (March 17), and punters will be treated to a free buffet each day.
Each day will conclude with a raffle draw . The fundraising week ends with Friday’s much-anticipated Gold Cup race, and Mavrix customers on that day have the chance to win a £50 voucher for Carrigan’s plus the same amount in cash, while there will also be runners-up prizes of Rangers and Celtic match tickets.
Mavrix director John Mulvaney has already got the fundraiser off to a flying start – personally donating £750 to top up the raffle sale proceeds, after last year generously match funding the £600 raised by customers.
He said: “It’s a fantastic week and everyone is welcome to come and join us.
“We’re very much a community pub and it’s great to do a big event like this and give something back.
“We were really pleased with how much we raised last year for a great cause.
“Everybody can relate to the work of the hospice and will have had friends, family members or know someone who’s been treated there.”
John previously told how the team at Mavrix were “taken aback” by the scale of their fundraising success last year, and said: “It was absolutely fantastic to see what was raised – it’s great to get everybody involved and we’re really looking forward to doing it all again this year.”