A CHARITY ball has proved a huge success after raising nearly £5,000 for children in and around Uttoxeter with special needs and disabilities.
Rakemark Respite’s second annual charity ball welcomed 182 guests to Branston Golf and Country Club to raise £4,700 for the holiday club.
The guests were greeted by Wayne Shelton, the master of ceremonies, and violinist Jeremy Sampson with photographer Faye Mawer taking photographs of them arriving.
During the night the guests took part in a raffle and auction with prizes including a signed dartboard and darts donated by Phil Taylor, a signed Stoke City football and a bottle of whisky signed by Prime Minister David Cameron, as well as a tour of the Houses of Parliament.
Uttoxeter proprietors Kizzy from Hidden Gem, Daisy Chain, Faye Mawer Photography and Jayne Egerton at the Hayloft Bed and Breakfast also donated prizes.
Joanne Howson, of Rakemark Respite, said: “The event was a great success and I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their support and generosity.” Rakemark Respite was established by a group of mothers of children with special needs or disabilities in 2010 after experiencing first hand how a lack of facilities for children with these needs can affect them during the school holidays.
The charity holds sessions throughout the holidays at Rocester Children’s Centre and provides a minibus to transport the children to and from the centre.
Since it was first established the group has continued to go from strength-tostrength after securing funding from various sources and holding fund-raising events.
