Paul Dimmock, Fundraiser
A generous donation, secured a range of auctions and other sales over the past 12 months, a member of the Samson Centre who prefers to remain anonymous has been collecting items specifically sport and music memorabilia over many years, he said “the fun was really in the collecting, it’s time now to let others enjoy them”, this tremendous gift which comprised of a signed Bruce Springsteen guitar, signed golf and darts player photographs and much, much more, has raised some £4,200. The items were auctioned by Milford Golf Club, some items on Ebay (thanks to John Hambly) and Ewbanks auctioneers who auctioned many items at no charge as part of their support to local charities.
Book “Stones from the inside” Signed by Bill Wyman, one of the auctioned items.
Kayak Ergo Donation
Kayak Ergos A unique feature of the Samson Centre is the collaboration under one roof between a range of organization, The Lions, Wey Kayak Club, Surrey University, The Guildford Sub Aqua and of course us the Samson Centre. An unintended product of this collaboration is the Thursday Kayak Ergo session for members of the Samson Centre. With the support of The Hewer White Trust 11 kayak ergos are available for sessions (although due to Covid best practice a maximum of 6 are currently used), the sessions provide the opportunity for cardiovascular exercise and two sessions operate every Thursday morning. The kayak club provide a coach and Alison, Rachel and Davinia are there for support. Back in September 2021, Liam Heath OBE, the most successful British canoeist of all time and a member of the Kayak Club, joined the session and showed his latest Olympic medal won in Tokyo to the group.
MotoMed Bikes funding from Sport England has enabled the purchase of two new bikes, trials of differing styles will determine which machines best suit the £10,000 investment from Sport England, the machines are manufactured in Germany and due to a range of issues, the trials have been delayed until the end of January. The Motomed Bikes are a significant element in of assisting people who live with MS to remain physically active and will form a key element in the armory for the Physio and Rehab Teams.
New Gym Equipment an exciting development for the Samson Centre is a refit of the Gym equipment, the vast majority of the equipment in the gym is some 30 plus years old, donated by Brunel University. The equipment although serviceable, does not all meet the needs of some people with limited mobility, Chris Boys the Gym Manager has been working with a range of equipment providers to establish a gym which is fully inclusive, providing equipment for both cardiovascular and resistance workouts. The trustees are committed to ensuring the gym is appropriately equipped and to assist in this ambition application bids are being prepared. It is estimated the cost of the equipment for the Gym will be approximately £100,000.
Milford Golf Club Raise £17,000
Milford Golf Club nominated the Samson Centre as their charity of the year, Nicki Cavaliero with Angela Wainwright (joint Ladies Captains) and Peter Jones (Men’s captain) have encouraged club members to support the Samson Centre in auctions, matches, cake and bottle sales, all the tremendous work and generosity of the club’s members have raised a staggering £17,000, made particularly impressive in a year where the club has had restricted play and activities due to the pandemic. A special note of thanks to two Samson Centre oxygen centre volunteers Chris and David, who both literally weathered the elements to sell golf balls at Club competitions, this alone raised a staggering £1,350. A massive thanks to Angela, Peter and Nicki for galvanizing the golf club members into a frenzy of activity to support the Samson Centre.