Support to Individuals
We are happy to support individuals or families in need of help, but we need referrals from organisations such as social services or doctor’s surgeries. If you think we can help please contact us.
Friday 1 November 2024: £3000 donated to Regain
We organised the second Classic Motor Show on Elms Field in June. The main beneficiary for the show was Regain -The Trust for Sports Tetraplegics charity.
President Andy Goffin and Chair of the Motor Show Committee Bob DuGard met with Calum Frampton from Regain and Kylie Grimes MBE, Regain Ambassador, to present a cheque for £3,000 to the charity.
The presentation took place in Kylie’s hometown of Farnham. We would like to thank Alan Moore of Berkshire and District Classic Car Club (BADCCC), for bringing his classic Ford Capri 2.8 as a backdrop for the photo.
Bob DuGard said “The Classic Motor Show was very successful, and Wokingham Lions have received lots of positive feedback from the public. We raised a total of £5,000. Regain were delighted with their £3,000 donation, and the balance will be distributed to local charities and good causes”.
Friday 7 June 2024: 50th Anniversary Presentation Event
At the beginning of the year we announced that to commemorate our 50th anniversary we would award 50 Golden Awards of £500 each to charities who were doing something notable during the year. On 7th June we invited many of the recipients, and other guests and dignitaries, to a presentation afternoon. Click here to see full details.
10 April 2024: Donations to Fireworks 2023 Beneficiaries
We, along with Wokingham Rotary Club, Easthampstead Rotary Club & Windsor Forest Unicorn Club, organise the Wokingham Fireworks each November, a long established and popular annual charity event. Each Club names their chosen beneficiaries and the proceeds are distributed equally to them.
We chose Daisy’s Dream and First Days Children’s Charity as our beneficiaries. Together they received the majority of our share of the proceeds, with the remainder going into our charity account.
At our April business meeting we welcomed Joanne Somner from Daisy’s Dream, a charity that supports children through a significant bereavement. Joanne said that Daisy’s Dream were delighted with the donation of £3,500. She went on to explain how the charity came into being:
- The charity started in 1996 when a local mother suddenly lost her husband. She and her children attended an out of area residential weekend which she found ‘transformational’, and she wondered why there was nothing available in Berkshire? From that thought grew Daisy’s Dream, named after the family dog!
- She explained that our donation could fund their phone line for three months, facilitate a great family day out for the children they help, or allow 10 children to access a course of six one-to-one coaching sessions.
Lion Debbie Slay presented a cheque for £2,500 to Clare Springate and Alison Saunders of First Days Children’s Charity at their Uniform Shop in the Elevate building in Wokingham.
First Days support families who are living with a low income or experiencing financial hardship, by providing everyday essentials for children who need them. They also provide school uniform to those in need upon referral.
First Days have opened the Uniform Shop where parents can purchase pre-loved uniform at reasonable prices. The proceeds are used to fund uniforms for families who can’t afford to pay. Wokingham Lions are helping them by manning the shop on Thursday afternoons.
1 – 3 March 2024: Marie Curie Daffodil Collection
Every year we help Marie Curie with their daffodil collection. Several members took shifts to cover three days at Morrisons supermarket and collected a total of £917.
Wednesday 14 February 2024: Donations to the Winter Carnival 2023 beneficiaries, SHARE Wokingham and Home-Start Wokingham
Representatives from the two main beneficiaries were invited to our business meeting to accept cheques for £3,500 each.
Claire Revie explained that SHARE Wokingham started four years ago to help those in need and reduce food waste. It now works from 15 sites throughout Wokingham Borough and each month around 40 tonnes of food are processed that would have otherwise been wasted. Claire also talked about two new schemes. The first called the Roots Community Food Store, has been set up to help residents who can’t afford a full, healthy diet and is run from Norreys Church. The second is a pilot scheme in conjunction with Keep Hatch Primary School called The JAM Club (Just about Managing), to offer school children fruit, vegetables and other healthy items.
Amy Fennell explained that Home-Start Wokingham District is a small charity supporting families in crisis. Their only proviso is that there is at least one child under five in the family. Last year they helped about 45 families by matching them with one of their trained volunteers. The volunteers can provide both practical and emotional support to the families and can also signpost them to other services that may be useful.
Wednesday 12 July 2023: Donations to the May Fayre 2023 beneficiaries, Camp Mohawk and Thames Hospice
Representatives from the two main beneficiaries were invited to our business meeting to accept cheques for £4000 each.
Samantha Rosier, Fundraising Chairman for Camp Mohawk receved a cheque from president Lyn Baily and said “We will use the money to refurbish our Sensory Room, to provide options of both calming and stimulating environments. Sensory rooms play a pivotal part in assisting with the development of children with sensory issues. They are also hugely enjoyed by children with other learning difficulties and disabilities and as such are a fundamental part of Camp Mohawk’s range of facilities”.
Layla Pipe, Senior Community Fundraiser for Thames Hospice said “On behalf of us all at Thames Hospice, I would like to thank the Wokingham Lions for the £4,000, which could fund six weeks of vital end-of-life care for two patients at home. We rely heavily on support from groups such as the Lions to help fund our care, and their continued support and amazing donation are so very much appreciated”
Wednesday 17 May 2023: Visit to Camp Mohawk
Camp Mohawk is one of the beneficiaries of the May Fayre so a number of our members visited to see first hand what they do.
It’s a multi-functional day centre for children with special needs and their families, set in 5 acres of beautiful countryside, just outside Wargrave, Berkshire. Throughout the year the centre provides a range of activities, facilities and natural space to encourage children with a variety of special needs to play, socialise and learn in a secure and caring environment.
It was a very informative session for members – thank you for showing us around!
You can read more about their work here https://www.campmohawk.org.uk
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April 2023: Donation to Thames Valley Air Ambulance
In April, Wokingham Lions Club members Paul Baily and Andy Goffin were delighted to accept an invitation to attend the Thames Valley Air Ambulance, Supporter Day. It was a good chance to find out more about this excellent charity and to see their helicopter up close. The opportunity was also taken to present them with the donation of £5,000 from The Wokingham Fireworks event.
Monday 2 January 2023: £3,500 donations to Kaleidoscopic UK and Building for the Future
Kaleidoscopic UK and Building for the Future were nominated an the main beneficiaries of the Winter Carnival.
Claire Mangers-Page (Wokingham Lions president) and Tim Hanton (Chairman of the Winter Carnival committee) met with representatives of the charities to hand over cheques:
Vickie Robertson of Kaleidoscopic UK was the grateful recipient of a cheque for £3,500. They are a charitable organisation of survivors for survivors of domestic abuse in ALL its forms, based in the Thames Valley and providing support services throughout England and Wales. It was founded by Vickie in January 2019 after her experience of childhood and adult domestic abuse.
Jane Holmes received a £3,500 cheque for Building for the Future. They are a Wokingham based, parent led charity providing activities, support and therapy for children with disabilities and/or additional needs and their families.
Saturday 19 November 2022: Collection for the Foodbank
Wokingham Foodbank asked us if we could run a special collection for them to help with the expected increase in demand leading up to Christmas. We were given permission to set up a stall outside Waitrose supermarket, asking customers to buy an extra item and leave it with us.
Their customers were very generous, so we were able to collect over 400Kg of donations.
August 2022: Donations from the Classic Car Show to Wokingham Men’s Shed and Leukaemia UK
Leukaemia UK and Wokingham Men’s Shed both received £1,500, which will be put to good use very soon.
When presented with the funds Paul Abbott from Leukaemia UK was delighted and said: “We are so grateful to Wokingham Lions Club for choosing Leukaemia UK as one of the charities to receive this money. Donations like this help us continue to fund life-changing research to accelerate progress in diagnosis, find kinder treatments and better care for leukaemia patients. Leukaemia devastates lives and it’s due to fundraisers like Wokingham Lions Club that we hope one day this will no longer be the case.”
Ron Baillie of Wokingham Mens Shed was similarly pleased and said “It is wonderful that the Wokingham Men’s Shed has been widely recognised in the community. We are all about helping to combat loneliness and isolation, by giving men an opportunity and good reason to get out of the armchair and go and do something collaborative with others in the Shed. This donation from the Wokingham Lions will go towards new tools, and we are deeply grateful for their support.”
Friday 24 June 2022: £3,000 donation to Just Around the Corner
Just Around the Corner, JAC, was the second charity chosen as a beneficiary of the May Fayre so we had pleasure giving a cheque for £3,000 to the founder, Sam Milligan.
Sam gave us a tour of their premises and explained how JAC started from humble beginnings about 24 years ago and has grown into an amazing facility that helps young people overcome difficulties that prevent them from engaging in society. It does this primarily by encouraging them to interact with animals, and also by developing interests in topics like gardening, bee-keeping and horticulture. They also run a shop manned by youngsters to encourage them to interact with the public.
Sam showed us the buildings and facilities they have created, and the livestock, including horses, donkeys, goats, chickens and rabbits. He explained that horses have an affinity to people and there is a two-way interaction that is particularly beneficial to youngsters who may have problems interacting with people.
We were totally overwhelmed by Sam’s dedication and commitment, and astounded at his breadth of knowledge. We all agreed that JAC richly deserved the donation we gave him
Wednesday 8 June 2022: £3,000 donation to Link Visiting
Link Visiting was one of the charities we chose as beneficiaries of the May Fayre. We therefore invited their John Mallaghan to our business meeting, at which we presented him with a cheque for £3,000.
John thanked us for the donation and gave a summary of the history of Link Visiting and the work they do addressing loneliness and and social isolation. They currently support around 400 people living on their own by matching them to volunteers who befriend them and give whatever support they can. Their motto is Confronting Loneliness, Celebrating Friendship. The pinnacle of their success was receiving the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service
Wednesday 8 June 2022: Claire Revie receives Gerry Aggett award
Gerry Aggett was a very active member of our club, but he sadly died several years ago. One of his greatest achievement was to instigate the Wokingham May Fayre in 1994, which we have continued running ever since.
As a momento we created the Gerry Aggett award which we grant annually to an individual who we consider has made a major contribution to the local community. As well as receiving a certificate the recipient also receives a donation of £1,000 to be given to a charity of their choice.
This year we gave the award to Claire Revie, who founded SHARE Wokingham at the start of the Covid Pandemic. SHARE collect surplus food and give it to those in need. Claire naturally chose SHARE as her nominated charity for the donation
Saturday 28 May 2022: Foodbank collection at Tesco
Wokingham Foodbank told us their stocks were running low as a result of increased demand. We responded by co-ordinating with Tesco to arrange a day’s collection similar to that in our Christmas Can-Can appeal. We were again amazed at the generousity of their customers and collected 511Kg of food donations plus £504.
Wednesday 13 April 2022: Donation to Thames Valley Air Ambulance
Wokingham Lions Club is one of the five service clubs that together form the Wokingham Fireworks Charitable Trust which organises the annual fireworks display every November. The 2021 event raised over £30,000 so our share was £6,000. We nominated the Thames Valley Air Ambulance as our chosen charity. Covid restrictions prevented us from holding meetings earlier, but we were able to invite Nicola Bishop to come to our April business meeting to accept our donation.
Nicola gave an illustrated presentation of the great work carried out by the TVAA before being presented with a cheque for £6,000 by our president, Andy Goffin.
Wednesday 9 March 2022: Ukraine
At our business meeting there was universal support and sympathy for the residents of Ukraine. It was agreed that we would donate £500 to the Disaster Emergency Committee Ukraine Relief Fund. This attracted Gift Aid, and the government had pledged to match all donations, so the effective total was £1,200.
We also agreed to give £1,000 to the Lions Club International Foundation (LCIF) Ukraine Humanitarian Fund. This is directly administered by Lions Clubs in the area, thus ensuring that no money is lost in administration costs.
July 2021: Special Needs Buggy
A young resident, Caroline Hepwood, has an extremely rare genetic condition called Nicolaides Baraitser Syndrome. She has severe learning difficulties and limited speech. Her mother, Claire Hepwood, approached Wokingham Lions for a donation towards the cost of a special needs buggy for Caroline. When we looking into the request we decided that we would cover the cost in full.
Claire told us “The buggy will make such a difference, and allow me confidently to go out into the community on my own with her. Since lockdown, Caroline’s behavior has been unpredictable, and I didn’t feel safe taking her out.”
Saturday 11 April 2021: Donation to Marie Curie
For several years Wokingham Lions have supported Marie Curie by helping with their Daffodil Appeal collection. However we were unable to help this year because covid lockdown rules prevented supermarket collections. Instead we donated the proceeds of the March quiz, totalling £360.
Fiona Turner, Berkshire’s community fundraiser, Marie Curie, said: “On behalf of all at Marie Curie, I would like to thank the Wokingham Lions, and all who took part in the recent virtual pub quiz, for raising £360. This is a wonderful amount, and we are so grateful to you for supporting us at this event. The money raised will allow us to continue to support many more people locally who are suffering from a terminal illness, through our community nursing service. Although the service is free to parents and families, it costs us £20 per hour of nursing. Thank you again for your wonderful donation and support.”
Monday 26 October 2020: Quiz proceeds donated to the Ollie Young Foundation
Proceeds from the Wokingham Lions Club virtual pub quiz in September have been donated to the Ollie Young Foundation (OYF), a local charity which funds targeted paediatric brain tumour research and support. Nigel Page, president of the Lions club, presented a cheque for £320 to Sarah Simpson, founder of OYF.
Sarah said: “We are extremely grateful to the Wokingham Lions Club for their support through this extraordinary time. Their efforts and selflessness are what gives charities like ours the little boost we need. Thank you to all those who took part in the virtual quiz. Thank you to Ian for hosting yet another great evening, and to all those who donated to our charity too. We very much appreciate it.”
Easter 2020: Wokingham Lions Giant Easter Egg Raffle
We distributed giant easter eggs to numerous pubs and restaurants in Wokingham and the surrounding area. Each venue would have held a raffle with the egg as the prize. All the proceeds would have gone to our charity account, which is used to support local good causes.
However, due to the coronavirus all pubs and restaurants were closed over the Easter period. Some venues had already sold tickets, and gave us the takings. We have asked each venue to use the egg however they choose, and several donated their eggs to the children’s ward at the Royal Berks Hospital
Wednesday 11 March 2020: Gerry Aggett Award to Lindsay Browne
Gerry Aggett was a very active member of Wokingham Lions Club whose achievements included initiating the May Fayre. When he died the Club created the Gerry Aggett Award in his memory. It is given each year to an individual who we consider has contributed significantly to the local community, and a donation of £1,000 is given to a local charity of their choice.
This year the Club unanimously chose Lyndsay Browne as the recipient. Lyndsay created the charity School Days, which collects used school uniforms and equipment, renovates them then distributes them to families in need. They also buy new uniforms when necessary. Wokingham Lions have supported School Days since its inception in 2018. Our president, Lyn Baily, has established a particularly strong association with Lyndsay, who the Club decided was a very worthy winner of the award. Lyndsay chose to give the donation to School Days and Homestart.
In accepting the award Lyndsay noted that School Days have so far helped over 530 children. One recent initiative that was helped by various Lions members was refurbishing over 50 pairs of football boots that were kindly donated to them.
Wednesday 13 November 2019: Cheque Presentations to WADE and the Ollie Young Foundation
John Cleary was instrumental in organising the first #Woky Comedy Night, and at our business meeting we handed over the proceeds. President Lyn Baily presented a cheque for £1000 to Jackie Wilson from WADE, who explained that they provide a day centre for the elderly, but they were finding more and more of the people they help now suffer from dementia. She then presented a cheque for £500 to Sarah Simpson and Barbara Young from the Ollie Young Foundation.
Wednesday 11 September 2019: Donation to Sue Ryder
President Lyn Baily handed a cheque for £5,000 to Abi Hurst, community fundraiser for the Sue Ryder Wokingham Day Hospice. The funds will be used to purchase two new specialist chairs and a new IV drip to help patients with limited mobility.
In accepting the cheque Abi said “We at Sue Ryder Wokingham Day Hospice are so grateful to the Wokingham Lions Club for their generous donation. It was lovely to have them come over to the hospice, and for them to see first-hand how their donation will be used. It also helps with understanding about our services in the hospice and the local community. We rely heavily on support from groups such as the Lions, and their support and amazing donation are so very much appreciated!“
Lyn responded: “Lion Patrick Allen and I visited the Sue Ryder Hospice, and it was good to see the facility and meet the wonderful staff. We are very pleased to make this donation to such a worthy cause.”
Founder Lady Sue Ryder was a humanitarian dedicated to the relief of suffering. The Wokingham Day Hospice provides expert palliative care and services for people who are living with life-limiting conditions, as well as supporting their families. Services are offered in the hospice or at home. Other health professionals include occupational therapists, physiotherapists and dieticians.
Monday 10 July 2019: Donations from the May Fayre
Profits from this year’s May Fayre event were donated to two local charities, Me2 Club and Home-Start Wokingham.
Vice President Lyn Baily said: “We are very pleased to be able to support Me2 Club and Home-Start, with a cheque for £3,000 to each organisation. This money will help vulnerable families with children in the Wokingham area, and enable them to continue their valuable work.”
Tess Eagles, manager, Me2 Club, said: “The Me2 Club team is very grateful for this amazing support from the Wokingham Lions Club. The fantastic donation of £3,000 will enable six more local children with additional needs to join in with a weekly, mainstream leisure activity. With the support of their volunteer ‘buddy’ the children will grow in confidence and self-esteem, whilst having lots of fun! Families will also receive approximately 285 hours of valuable respite. We would not be able to survive without donations such as this, and we would like to say thank you for choosing us as a beneficiary of the Wokingham May Fayre.”
Emma Roberts, scheme manager, Home-Start Wokingham District, said: “With the support provided by the Wokingham Lions, from the proceeds of the May Fayre, we can continue to provide our support to vulnerable families across the Wokingham Borough. This vital donation will enable us to train more volunteers, and in turn these volunteers will regularly support families with young children, helping to reducing isolation, providing encouragement and advice and a listening ear. Without this support from the May Fayre, our waiting list of families needing support would get even longer. A huge thank you to the Wokingham Lions, and by extension all those who supported the May Fayre, for your help to us in our work.”
The Wokingham Lions Club works in partnership with the Wokingham Town Council to organise the annual May Fayre. The May Fayre’s profits are made up from proceeds from the May Fayre (stall sales), sponsorship and public donations on the day. Organised by Lions Andy Slay, Ian Grange and other Lions members, this year’s annual May Fayre event took place on 6th May 2019.
Wednesday 8 May 2019: Cheque Presentations to Involve Community Services and Daisy’s Dream
Philip Cook from Involve and Ellen Ludlow from Daisy’s Dream were unable to attend the recent Presentation Evening so were invited to our next business meeting.
President Debbie Slay explained to them that we invited all our members to nominate charities to be supported from the proceeds of the May Fayre, from which we chose two. We decided to donate £500 to each of the runners up, which included Involve and Daisy’s Dream. Debbie and Andy Slay (who managed the May Fayre) therefore presented cheques to them.
Philip and Ellen each gave a short presentation describing their respective organisations.
Wednesday 3 April 2019: Buffet & Wine Presentation Evening
We invited representatives from the charities we chose to support from some of our fund-raising events to this special event in Wokingham Town Hall. Our president Debbie Slay, assisted by various members of our Fund-Raising Committee, handed over cheques totalling £6,500. Donations and assistants were as follows:
Winter Carnival Festive Dash (Bob Westerman):
- £500 to Macmillan Cancer Support (represented by Mark Clements)
May Fayre 2019 Nominees (Ian Grange):
We asked all our members to propose charities they would like to be supported from the proceeds of this year’s May Fayre, and chose two ‘winners’ from the suggestions. We then decided that all nominees should receive £500 each from our charity account, and presented cheques to the following:
- £500 to Daisy’s Dream
- £500 to Berkshire Multiple Sclerosis Therapy Centre (represented by Yvonne Alder)
- £500 to Headway Thames Valley (represented by Zoe Lane)
- £500 to Involve Community Services
- £500 to WADE (represented by Jackie Wilson) £500 to Younger People with Dementia (represented by Mark Hainy)
May Fayre 2019 Beneficiaries (Ian Grange):
The ‘winners’ of our internal vote will each receive half of the proceeds of the forthcoming May Fayre:
- Home-Start (represented by Tony Martin)
- Me2 Club (represented by Liz McDaniel)
Wokingham Fireworks 2018 (Lyn Baily):
We are one of the consortium of five service clubs that run the fireworks, so we share the proceeds, which we donate to a nominated charity:
- £2000 to School Days Wokingham (represented by Lindsey Browne)
Gerry Aggett Award (Patrick Allen)
One of our members, Gerry Aggett, started the annual May Fayre. He unfortunately died several years ago, and we decided to create an award in his name to be given to a local individual who makes an exceptional contribution to local good causes, which the recipient will in turn pass to a charity of their choice. This year we nominated Chris Pape, who has worked for many years to support individuals in need:
- £1000 to Yeldall Manor (via Chris Pape)
October 2018: Berkshire Women’s Aid
BWA help support victims of domestic abuse, the Wokingham Lions Club donated £1,000 to Berkshire Women’s Aid (BWA).
Liz Terry, Chief Executive, Berkshire Women’s Aid, said: “Thank you for your generosity. This money is really timely and very welcome. BWA are soon to take possession of a new building, and this donation will be used to provide furniture. We offer a safe haven for victims of domestic abuse and violence.”
Debbie Slay, president, Wokingham Lions Club, said: “We are pleased to support this important organisation, which was founded 40 years ago. We raised £480 at our Tea Tent at the Rock Choir Festival (Cantley Field) on the August Bank Holiday Monday. Our club matched the amount raised from our charity funds, and rounded it up to £1,000 for Berkshire Women’s Aid.”
Berkshire Women’s Aid works throughout Bracknell, Reading and Wokingham. For more information, please visit the website, www.berkshirewomensaid.org.uk. The Helpline phone number is 0118 950 4003.
August 2018: May Fayre Donations
Profits from this year’s May Fayre event were donated to two local charities by the Wokingham Lions Club at the 8th August business meeting. The beneficiaries are Thames Valley Air Ambulance and Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service.
Debbie Slay, president, Wokingham Lions Club, said: “We are once again pleased to be able to support two worthy charities, with a cheque for £3,000 to each organisation. We hope that this money will enable them to carry on their important work. In addition, we are pleased to welcome Wokingham Town Mayor Cllr Julian McGhee-Sumner as an honorary member of the club.”
Claire Redrup, Community Fundraising Manager, Thames Valley Air Ambulance, said: “We rely on the generosity of the communities we serve. We are not government funded and receive no National Lottery funding. Donations from the community are what keep our vital service operational. The generous funds from supporters such as the Wokingham Lions Club help us to deliver advanced care to people when the worst happens. We are now operational 19 hours a day, 365 days a year, attending more emergencies than ever.”
Claire Coldicott, Director of Fundraising and Communications at Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service said: “We are delighted to receive a donation of £3,000 from the Wokingham Lions Club. This money will go towards running our day care services that opened in June this year, in our new state of the art hospice building just outside Maidenhead, to support families who have a child with a life threatening or life limiting condition. Children will be able to enjoy play sessions in our fully-equipped sensory room, as well as making a mess in the creative learning zone and music in our dedicated all-age music space. We can’t thank Wokingham Lions enough for their support at such an exciting time in our development.”
The Wokingham Lions Club works in partnership with the Wokingham Town Council to organise the annual May Fayre. The May Fayre’s profits are made up from proceeds from the May Fayre (stall sales), sponsorship and public donations on the day.