Each year we aim to raise at least over £10,000 for our local children’s hospice. We usually do this through events like art tours and signwriting festivals. Of course, fundraising has been more difficult this past year because we were unable to travel our fairground due to the pandemic. Despite these challenges we are pleased to announce that in 2020 we raised a grand total of £11,796 for the Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice in Berkshire!
We would like to thank each and every one of you who made this possible. This just shows what we can achieve when we work together in a community.
This year we discovered many creative new ways to raise the money. First, we started hosting charity auctions on our social media channels with hand-painted signs from Joby Carter, Anna Carter and Gerald Whittaker. Here are some of the pieces that we auctioned, the Captain Tom sign raised £500 and the All the Fun of the Fair sign commemorating the Showman’s Guild’s WWII efforts raised £801.
Each Thursday on our online courses, Joby Carter paints a sign to demonstrate the techniques he is teaching that week and he auctions it off to the highest bidder in the class. Here are some of the signs they asked him to paint that have helped us reach our fundraising goal.
Finally, when Joby Carter and Scarlett Rickard’s book came out ‘Signwriting: Tips, Tricks and Inspiration’ we added the option for a signed copy for an extra £2.50 that goes straight to charity. We raised £1335 from these signatures alone!
Joby went to the hospice at the end of December to give them the good news that we’d raised over £10k. During the visit we also gifted them a hand-painted rocking horse and some giant teddies from the set of Paddington 2 for the kids. We livestreamed the moment on Facebook and you can watch it back here.
The Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice provides vital support to children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions, and their families, across Berkshire and the surrounding counties. They have continued providing support to the children and their families throughout the pandemic, adapting in order to make sure families can continue to access the specialist care that they need. Find out more about what they do here: alexanderdevine.org
Needless to say, we will try our hardest to raise at least another £10,000 in 2021. Join in by following us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter for updates on charity auctions, join us on a virtual signwriting course or order a signed copy of our latest book.
Thanks again to everyone who made it possible for us to raise this money for our chosen charity!
From Joby, Georgina and all the Carters family
