Every November we look forward to a week where we can bring a little extra fun to the office and raise hundreds, hopefully thousands, for a very special charity. Yes, we’re talking about Children in Need. This year we went all out and tripled last year’s efforts by raising an impressive £3,334.23.
The week started oh-so-sweetly with a cake bake where we saw some delightful and delicious home bakes which as always went down a treat. We especially liked the Snickers and Oreo cupcakes, they were incredible.
Then there were other events which were ridiculously fun and admittedly a little harder than we’d all like to admit, not mentioning the quiz or anything. It did provide a few chuckles however and we loved the healthy competition it gave the team.
The whole team went above and beyond in their efforts and a special mention must go to Matt Marks in our facilities team who unfortunately lost the Pie in Face challenge. Fortunately for Children in Need though, he raised over £45 alone, a considerable amount more than his opponents. (We really do have some good sports here at Verastar.)
The quiz proved highly popular and got everyone in great spirits, with the winning player, Dean Soller, scoring an impressive 99%. (We’d like to stress that Google wasn’t harmed in the completion of the quiz sheets.)
There was also the annual FIFA tournament which showed true sportsmanship and competition within our colleagues. The week-long console competition was won by Samuel Owolabi and the ‘Whose Child Am I?’ was Princi Sanghvi.
The raffle was also a roaring success, we had so many generous donations from local businesses and big name brands. From perfume and aftershave donated from Boots to crazy golf tickets from Paradise Island Adventure Golf and food vouchers from Nandos, Five Guys and Subway.
However, as always the best was saved for last when teams from across the whole business arrived in their best fancy dress costumes on Friday. This year’s theme was children’s characters and the efforts were nothing short of phenomenal. We had a mythical unicorn, Jasmine from Aladdin, Action Man and Tinkerbell to name a few. But the winning team for the take-home prize was Willy Wonka and his very own chocolate factory, complete with Oompa Loompa’s also known as the UDC team.
But the fundraising didn’t stop there, it continued the following week with Learning & Development Manager, Stacie completing a 160ft bungee jump over Salford Quays. Kudos to Stacie for overcoming her fear of heights and personally raising £602.29, which the company doubled and will be donated on behalf of Children in Need to Kershaw’s Hospice in Oldham.
It was a great team effort this year and the momentum was high all week. Thanks to this we managed to raise
the hugely impressive sum of £3,334.23 which will help aid some of the fantastic initiatives Children in Need manage.
