Rotarians celebrate new 'community asset' and look forward to future fundraising

Donations to a Rotary club’s brand-new Santa sleigh have raised £5,000, members were told at their first meeting after the seasonal break.

Donations to a Rotary club’s brand-new Santa sleigh have raised £5,000, members were told at their first meeting after the seasonal break.

Thanks were expressed to Rotarian Johnathan Callwood for getting Shrewsbury Severn Rotary Club’s new sleigh ready for the key fundraising season.

He has also been presented with a list of potential further improvements – including the need for more professional lighting and illumination – as part of a review.

Rotarian Fred McDonogh, who organises the sleigh rota, confirmed the supermarket days were again most successful, the relationship with Tesco having grown with their interest in the development of the new sleigh and constructive feedback on potential improvements.

Rotary's new sleigh captures much attention.

He said the new sleigh was more impactful in the day and that the night runs would benefit from additional lighting.

The club can now gauge how successful the sleigh programme was in 2024 compared to previous years with an emphasis on how much per hour was collected both at supermarkets and on community runs.

He said he would look into this and report back to members whom he thanked for their active support.

“I was tremendously impressed that so many people put in extra shifts. And to raise more funds the fact is that we have to run faster and faster.”

The 2024 fundraising campaign was given numerous support from third parties backing the sleigh, especially during its construction. It was suggested this may provide the club with an opportunity for new members.

A key point for future discussion was how the club could even up the workload around transportation of the sleigh with the need for a ‘workable solution.’

In addition, members heard that many requests were received for the sleigh to be present at various functions which could provide the club with an additional income stream through the hiring out of the sleigh. The club agreed to ‘test the water’ to see if this was a viable proposition.

Members heard that the cost of building the sleigh was around £2,000. With a £1,100 donation from Barclays Bank this reduced the hit to the club’s charity account to only £900.

Said president David Morris: “This has worked out as incredible value to the club, providing a very recognisable community asset for years to come. It has also been agreed that a small group of members will conduct a thorough review of the sleigh programme in the near future and discuss options for this Christmas.”

Anyone wishing to know more about Shrewsbury Severn Rotary Club - and its sleigh - can contact gdmw@hotmail.co.uk