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Tag: charity

  • The Bus Shelter MK

    The Bus Shelter MK

    So what’s the new interest in buses?

    We were delighted to welcome The then Mayor of Milton Keynes, Councillor Martin Petchey to our production of “Iolanthe” in March.? He told us about this wonderful local charity giving help in Milton Keynes.

    The Bus Shelter MK is a homeless shelter on wheels to reduce rough sleeping in Milton Keynes. Homelessness can hit anyone – most of us are just three pay packets away from losing our home. With your help they can provide over 5800 safe, warm nights for people forced to sleep on the streets and help them find a positive future.

     

    To read more about this excellent cause and donate to their fine work go to their website.

  • MK Hospital Cancer Unit

    MK Hospital Cancer Unit

    Lynn with Frances, Margaret and Jac in Patience 2014

    Lynn and Graham – The Mikado 1995

    So why are we showing pictures of Lynn?

    Lynn performed with us for more years than a lady cares to remember and she died aged just 60 in June 2017.? Her cancer treatment involved many long and tiring trips to Northampton for chemotherapy. Not that anyone watching her perform in Ruddigore that year would have guessed she was so ill and so tired!

    Milton Keynes Hospital are raising funds for a cancer care unit which will save people like Lynn the long round trip to Northampton for specialist treatment.

    Milton Keynes Hospital Charity

    Milton Keynes Hospital Charity raises money for all wards and departments at Milton Keynes University Hospital helping to improve patient experience and ensure that their stay at the hospital is as comfortable and positive as possible.

     

    Cancer Centre Appeal

    Milton Keynes is one of the fastest growing areas in the country ? our population stands at 300,000 and is forecast to increase by another 19.3% by 2026 ? and at the current locations on site, cancer services at Milton Keynes University Hospital are stretched to capacity.

    Over the past 5 years the cancer team at Milton Keynes University Hospital have worked tirelessly to improve the services in the existing facility. But even with these improvements, patients like Lynn still have to travel to Northampton, Bedford or Oxford to access some treatments. At the heart of all this is the extra pressure placed on the patient and their family during an already anxious and stressful time.

    A new cancer centre means the hospital can better support each and every cancer patient providing most of the services they need in an excellent environment close to home. It will be a dedicated space offering treatment, information and support services to anyone affected by cancer.

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    Get Involved

    None of the work of MK Hospital Charity could be achieved without the fantastic support of people in Milton Keynes and the surrounding areas. Fundraising makes a huge difference and has helped change the lives of thousands of patients and their families.

    Be Seen In Green is a fun and easy idea that anyone can get involved with ? whether that?s a group of friends, your workplace, or your school ? perhaps you?d like to organise a green themed bake sale, hold a plant sale or dress up day, or simply decorate your classroom or office in green! Download fundraising pack here: http://www.mkhcharity.org.uk/be-seen-in-green/

    Visit the MK Hospital Charity website to find out other ways to contribute and get involved: http://www.mkhc harity.org.uk/make-a-difference/

     

  • The Mayor and Mayoress come to call

    The Mayor and Mayoress come to call

    Wolverton G&S welcomes the Mayor of Milton Keynes

    We were very pleased to welcome the Mayor, Councillor David Hopkins and his wife Susan to see our production of “The Gondoliers”.? They kindly posed for photographs and visited backstage after the show.

    It was quite a a moment when our president breezily introduced them to our dressing room just as we were getting out of our costumes! They were completely unfazed, unlike the semi-clad actors!

    Cllr Hopkins wrote us a very nice letter after the show saying how much they had enjoyed it. He enclosed information about his charity for 2017/18, Ride High and we have chosen them for our GanderS charity spot?in this issue.

  • Ride High

    Ride High

    Milton Keynes Mayor introduces us to Ride High

    The Mayor, Councillor David Hopkins and his wife Susan accepted our invitation to see “The Gondoliers” and wrote a very nice letter to say how much they had enjoyed the show. Cllr Hopkins took the opportunity to introduce us to his charity for 2017/18, Ride High – and we’re glad he did.? This is a very interesting and worthwhile charity aimed at changing children’s lives for the better using horses.

    Rachel Medill set up Ride High in 2008 and from the very start there were key principles that she felt very strongly about, and today these principles underpin everything they do as an organisation:

    • They help children on the margins for whom there is often no other help available. The children are struggling with daily life and in many cases are desperately sad
    • Ride High is a place of consistency, safety, support, friendship and fun
    • They offer a range of activities beyond riding horses to help these children make changes to their skills, confidence and prospects
    • They offer a long term programme so that the benefits are sustained and can, in many cases, last a lifetime.

    You can help Ride High in their vital work in a numbers of ways:

    Please do take the time to visit their website and see if you can contribute.

  • Singing for the Brain

    Singing for the Brain

    Our Ruth Helps People with Fading Memories – and so can you!

    So how does singing help?

    Singing for the Brain is a service provided by Alzheimer’s Society which uses singing to bring people together in a friendly and stimulating social environment.

    Singing is not only an enjoyable activity, it can also provide a way for people with dementia, along with their carers, to express themselves and socialise with others in a fun and supportive group.

    Hidden in the fun are activities which build on the well-known preserved memory for song and music in the brain. Even when many memories are hard to retrieve, music is especially easy to recall.

    Ruth Martin our chief publicist, shares her love of singing with two ‘Singing for the Brain’ groups here in Milton Keynes.

    ‘Singing for the Brain’ is an Alzheimer’s?Society initiative to support people living with mild or moderate dementia and their carers; the groups meet on Monday mornings or afternoons, once a fortnight. The sessions are relaxed and fun, with a varied programme of vocal warm-up exercises and a wide selection of well-known songs from all eras. Ruth is joined by her fellow leader Sue Binnie, with Pete Simpson on keyboard.

    Wolverton G&S Society donates free tickets for members of the two ?Singing for the Brain? groups to attend our main show; they are much appreciated by everyone and some members also buy tickets to support our other shows.

    Anyone interested in coming along should contact Vicky at Alzheimer’s Society on 01908 232612; we’ve currently got spaces in the morning group.

  • Break the Spine

    Break the Spine

    A truly epic challenge – and our own Chris Worton is competing

    “Many of you will be aware that I may do a little bit of running. Some of you may be aware that I have started to participate in ultra marathon events (any race that is over the 26.2 miles of a marathon), and a few of you may be aware that earlier this year, back in January I completed ?The Spine Challenger? a 108 mile adventure ultra race in northern England.

    Well this was but a ?fun run? compared to my next race?”

    This coming January Chris will be competing in the notorious ?Spine Race? ? billed as ?Britain?s most brutal race?. The Spine Race sends runners along the full length of the Pennine way in northern England, starting at Edale in Derbyshire, and finishing in Kirk Yetholm just over the border in Scotland. This 268 mile race is held in the middle of January to hopefully catch the best (or worse) weather Britain can muster, and the runners (yes -our Chris!) are expected to complete this race within a 7 day cut-off. The challenges will be the weather, the darkness (18 hours a day night of the stuff), notoriously difficult to navigate terrain, and sleep deprivation, while lugging a minimum amount of required safety kit on his back.

    “Training for this (for me) has been going on all year, but now autumn has come it will start ramping up in anticipation of the hardships ahead. To help me mentally I have decided this year to try and raise a bit of cash (yes sponsorship) for our local special care baby unit in MK hospital. Having this sponsorship looming in the background could well be one of the things that helps spur me on to finishing this beast, so please be a dear and support me in this event by pledging some money via this web address: https://www.justgiving.com/thespinerace

    When the race is nearer I will let people who are interested know about how you can follow my progress online, as we will all carry a GPS tracker, so you can follow my dot on screen and check my progress (and watch me getting lost in the darkness), but in the meantime please sit back and glow in the warm feeling that you get when you sponsor someone for a great cause.

    Thanks very much”

    Chris