Charity events raise £10,000 for local hospitals

Harewood Forest was awash with colour this morning as hundreds of people turned out for a charity fundraising event.

Hampshire Hospitals Charity’s third Colour Run took place just outside Andover and saw supporters traverse the countryside course while being covered in eco-friendly paint.

The colourful event was followed by a free family-friendly afternoon to celebrate 100 years of care at Andover War Memorial. The charity’s Party at the Pavilion saw the community enjoy a range of stalls, including local businesses, plenty of refreshments and a bouncy castle, as well as live music throughout the afternoon.

Sabrina Marsden, fundraising manager at Hampshire Hospitals Charity, said: “It’s been a fantastic day at Wherwell Cricket Club with our Colour Run and Party at the Pavilion. It’s wonderful to be able to provide events that really bring the community together and help raise funds to support our local hospitals.”

So far, the two events combined have helped to raise over £10,000 for the charity with sponsorship from the Colour Run still coming in.

Last year’s event helped to fund activity resources for dementia patients and folding beds for family to stay close to loved ones in hospital and, once sponsorship and donations are all totalled up from this year’s event, the charity will be able to share the final amount raised and which important projects supporters have been able to fund.

Sabrina added: “As I’m sure everyone is aware, events like this don’t just happen and we’ve had some incredible support from local groups and companies and I’d like to thank the Earl and Countess of Brecknock and their family for granting us permission to host the Colour Run through Harewood Forest, Wherwell Cricket Club for allowing us to use the cricket field today, Love Andover for providing the music this morning and the bands who gave their time for free this afternoon, and finally our incredibly sponsors Parker Bullen, Hildon, Tops Day Nurseries, Barchester, Cornerstones Nurseries and Andover Leisure.”

Hampshire Hospitals Charity focuses on supporting patients and staff across hospitals in Andover, Winchester and Basingstoke.