Portsmouth Sailing Club to ride around city in aid of Rowans Hospice
MEMBERS of a sailing club are sticking to their annual tradition of taking part in a charity bike ride despite the coronavirus pandemic.
Portsmouth Sailing Club is taking part in the My Rowans Ride for Rowans Hospice.
Together its members are on a mission to raise £1,000 for the Purbrook-based charity, which like other organisations is facing financial struggles due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Member Liz Wiffin said: ‘We have been doing the annual Rowans ride for about seven years now and we have raised about £3,000.
‘The charity is important to all of us as we all have family members and friends who have been helped by the charity and one of our members spent his last days there. The care they provide is amazing.
‘It is so important to raise money for them this year especially due to Covid.’
In June, the hospice launched an urgent fundraising appeal after it faced a loss of more than £1m since lockdown due to charity shops having to close and fundraising events being cancelled.
The charity has only been saved from closing its doors thanks to the government covering its losses from a £750m pot that was announced in April for front-line charities, hospices and those supporting domestic abuse victims.
Chief executive Ruth White said: ‘Our reliance on voluntary donations is now more crucial than ever, as we prepare for the long haul and the aftermath of this global pandemic.
‘We know there is a lot of financial hardship at the moment but it is not about really big donations but a little from everyone goes a long way.’
Liz has also being taken part in a challenge of her own for the hospice and rode 1,000km, the distance between Southsea and John o’Groats, during July and August.
The 53-year-old from Southsea said: ‘It has been fun to give myself a challenge and I have raised about £610 so far.’
The club will be riding around Portsmouth on Sunday, September 6, starting from the Camber.
To donate visit justgiving.com/fundraising/pschospiceride
For more information about the Rowans Ride visit rowanshospice.co.uk/events/rowans-ride