Coracle racers raise £35k for Macmillan Cancer Support charity
Nearly £35,500 has been raised at this year’s Coracle World Championships held on the River Severn in Shrewsbury.
More than 40 teams took part in the event, supported by Invertek Drives Ltd, held during September in aid of the Macmillan Cancer Support charity.
Teams of four battled against each other to cross the River Severn both ways in the fastest time possible between the Pengwern Boat Club and the Quarry river bank.
Glyn Jones, Technical Director at Invertek Drives Ltd, said it was a phenomenal amount of money raised and praised those taking part and the organisers. Glyn, who took part with fellow directors Adrian Ellam and David Jones, said: “Macmillan Cancer Support is a charity close to the hearts of our employees and we were pleased to enter five teams in the event.
“Coracles are not the easiest of craft to manoeuvre, yet alone sit in, and many of the teams ended up in the river. However, the event brought out the best of everyone and it was well worth it to raise vital money for Macmillan.”
Event Chairperson, Jayney Davies, said: “Yet again we have been overwhelmed by the generosity of people. This year was the first time we’d held the championships since before the pandemic and so it was great to see so many of the teams from local businesses taking part.
“It couldn’t happen without them or the group of volunteers who help organise it, including the Rapid Relief Team who undertook the catering.
“We’ve now raised more than £350,000 since the event began back in 2007, organised by the late Richard Bayliss. He’d be very proud of what has been achieved in that time.”
The championships were supported by Invertek Drives Ltd, a global innovator and manufacturer of variable frequency drives used to control electric motors used in a range motion control and HVACR applications, based at Welshpool, Powys.
Kate Thomas, Macmillan Relationship Fundraising Manager for the West Midlands, said: “We can’t thank everyone enough. £35,500 is a staggering amount of money and it will be used to support people suffering from cancer, along with their families and friends helping through the journey.
“Events such as this help raise awareness of Macmillan and raise vital money in a fun way so that we can continue to do whatever it takes to support people living with cancer.”
In October, Macmillan launched a new project in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin to improve the experiences.
The Macmillan Community Care Project, was launched in late 2021 and began in pilot GP practices from January 2022. It is a pilot scheme which involves Macmillan Community Care Co-ordinators working closely with selected general practice (GP) surgeries across the region, to improve Cancer Care Reviews (CCR’s) completed in Primary Care.
The project began as a result of a £284,000 support grant provided by Macmillan Cancer Support, and is aimed at increasing the number and quality of Cancer Care Reviews – conversations between a patient and their GP or Practice Nurse about their cancer journey - completed within the 12-month period following diagnosis.
Kate added: “It’s projects like this that are benefiting from the money raised at events such as the coracle championships. We’re looking forward to teams coming forward for next year’s event which will again take place in September.”
