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On Wednesday 27th August we were invited to visit Procter and Gamble's site in Reading to receive a 'large' cheque for this year's donation. Early last year they contacted us and explained that we had been chosen as one of their charities of the year for last year and this year.  Ruth and Sue went along and were presented with the cheque by Louise Pollard and Charlotte Carlisle and several other members of staff.  Ruth gave a short talk to some of the staff thanking them for their generous donation and explaining about the work of Reading Family Aid in providing Outings for disadvantaged families in the Reding area as well as providing toys and gifts at Christmas for children who would otherwise be unlikely to receive anything. Ruth explained that the £3000 would be spent on buying gifts for some of the categories of children for whom we struggle to receive sufficient donations (eg. teenagers and those with special needs). As well as providing funds, P&G have also promised to support our Toys and Teens Appeal again this year, as last year, by holding an in-house toys and gift collection for the older children with Donation Point Bins around the site as well as providing some volunteers to help with the sorting and packing of the donated gifts during the "Toy Project Week" in early December.   Our grateful thanks go to Sallie Wall our trusty outings organiser who planned this year’s trip to Camp Mohawk on August 20th. This is the last trip that Sallie will plan. After over 20 years of service, she is retiring from our committee. Sallie has successfully organised so many trips and her reward has been to witness the beaming smiles on the faces of hundreds of children over the years. Sallie introduced the Camp Mohawk visits at least 15 years ago. It has been a favourite fixture on our outings calendar ever since.  A photo from the early days at at Camp Mohawk with ex-committee members, Liz (left) and Florence (right) with Sallie (left centre) and Wendy last year's Chair (right centre).  This year families from Fifi’s Vision CIC, Christ the King, Homestart, Brighter Futures for Children and Alafia joined in the fun. Camp Mohawk offers such a safe and calming environment for families with children who have additional needs to relax together whilst exploring all the activities on offer.  As usual the warm pool was a big hit with parents and children alike. Then all the other activities including swings, climbing, juggling and football were enjoyed and the highlight for one young lad was the soft play indoors.
 On a beautiful hot and sunny day this month families from Children’s Centres, Homestart and Alana house boarded a Horseman’s coach in Reading bound for Beale park. The trip was organised by Mia (pictured) who joined Reading Family Aid's Outings Team this year.  The families were delighted to see so many different animals and birds. Some children even got chance to pet some animals. Lots of children and some parents cooled off in the paddling pool.  Everyone took advantage of the free tickets to climb aboard the little train which gave them a tour of the whole park.  As the tired but happy families gathered to get the coach home we were told about her son who had been chatting away all day even though he was usually non verbal. She said they will be talking about their day at the farm for the days and weeks to come. A testament to the value of our family outings.  Hannah from Alana House said “We had a brilliant day out together at Beale Park. We all and especially the kids got such a kick out of petting the animals, swimming and running about, eating yummy ice creams, joining in with the animal talks and riding through the park on the train. Thank you RFA for inviting Alana House to Beale Park, what a fun summer's day out :).”
Priya, also from Alan House said “It was an amazing day! We saw so many different animals and learnt interesting facts about them - my personal favourite were the reindeers. It was lovely seeing families enjoying themselves and spending time together in such a fun and beautiful place.”  On 30 July and August 13th we enjoyed trips to Bournemouth, joined by families from Homestart, the Weller Centre, Alana House Reading Refugee Support Group, Wycliffe Baptist Church and Reading Children’s Centres.  The first date was a glorious day at the seaside. The sun shone, chips were eaten on the beach, and many took a refreshing dip in the sea.  We received some lovely feedback from families: “Just wanted to thank you again for putting our names forward for the beach trip. We haven't been to the beach for a few years and had such a great day. The kids ran into the sea before I could even lay our blanket out!”  “Was just lovely watching the girls jumping the waves in the sea and we had a lovely day!” “Yesterday was so much fun, the children loved it and so did I. They went straight to sleep when we got home and slept in late this morning.” “I was very anxious about coming out for the day on my own with [child], as I haven’t done it before, but I am really glad I did. It is good practice for me as I will be flying on my own with him soon.”  The second day was a rather overcast day but the broad smiles on children’s faces (and the adults too) bore witness to the fun day out that everyone enjoyed.
 It was a tired but happy group that rejoined the Horseman’s coach for the safe journey back to Reading.  We later received this message from one of the refugee families: "I together with my family, would like to express our deepest gratitude and heartfelt appreciation for all the support and kindness you have given us. Through your help, we had the opportunity to travel to Bournemouth, including a wonderful visit to the beach. My children were truly happy and excited, and the experience has created special memories that we will always treasure". And from Wycliffe Baptist Church a 3year old boy so enjoyed his time that his Mum overheard his prayer which went like this… "Dear God, I do not want to go to the park anymore. Please could you make us have more fun like going to the beach again and other places."  The trips were organised by Vivienne and Mia from our Outings Team and were only possible due to the generous donatons we have received form our Supporters during the past year so Thank You to everyone that has donated.
 Earlier in the summer we had a call from someone at Enterprise Mobility™ in Reading asking some of us to come to their office for a surprise! They have supported us in the past, particularly for our Toys and Teens Appeal. Sue Marson, our Treasurer and Laura Windisch, our Secretary, with much anticipation, attended. They were presented by Enterprise Mobility's Team Members with a giant cheque for a giant amount of £2,500! Thanks to Enterprise Mobility™ for donating this very generous amount to Reading Family Aid. This grant will help support our Outings or go towards providing toys and gifts for our massive Toys and Teens project. Enterprise Mobility™ said "We choose to support Reading Family Aid every year because we believe in the amazing work they do. Their dedication to helping families through tough times, and bringing joy to children in our local community, is something we're truly proud to be a part of." Enterprise Mobility is a leading provider of mobility solutions including car rental, fleet management, flexible vehicle hire, carsharing, vanpooling, truck rental, luxury rental, retail car sales and vehicle subscription, as well as other transportation technology services and solutions, to make travel easier and more convenient for customers. Enterprise Mobility, inclusive of its subsidiaries and franchisees, and affiliate, Enterprise Fleet Management, manage a diverse fleet of more than 2.4 million vehicles through an integrated network of over 9,500 fully staffed neighborhood and airport rental locations in more than 90 countries and territories. Privately held by the Taylor family of St. Louis, Enterprise Mobility manages the Enterprise Rent-A-Car, National Car Rental and Alamo brands.
• Facebook: enterprisemobility • Instagram: @enterprise.mobility • LinkedIn: enterprise-mobility- • YouTube: @enterprisemobility  On Saturday 2nd August, the day started bright and sunny as we arrived at the Earley Green Fair site at Lakeside in Earley at around 7.30AM. It takes us more than 2 hours to get set up by the time we put up the gazebos, unload the cars with all the goods that we plan to sell and arrange it all so people are tempted to buy.  There are second hand books, jigsaws, games and toys left over from last year's Toys and Teens - items that weren't quite good enough or just not suitable for putting into the children's sacks for Christmas. We had also collected adult books, jigsaws, games and bric-a-brac.
 Quite a few people also showed interest in our work so hopefully we spread the word to more supporters and organisations that may like to use our services.
All in all another successful day - and the rain stayed away! On Thursday 10 July, Reading Family Aid held its AGM. Wendy, Chair, thanked all our sponsors, supporters and committee members for another very successful year. Highlights of the year included:
Our Treasurer, Sue, reported that we had another excellent year of fundraising with an income of over £48,000. We spent just over £33,000, mainly on toys and outings. We finished the year with a balance of over £48,000, which sets us up well to continue our activities for next year. There were some changes to the Officers, with Wendy handing over the Chair role to Anna, and Paul stepping up to be Vice Chair and Trustee. Once the formal part of the meeting was complete the committee members enjoyed some refreshments and the chance to socialise in person.  Also on June 21st, St. Andrews in Caversham held a Tea Party in their Church Hall in support of Reading Family Aid. There were several stalls as well as tea and cakes.
Sheila and Laura from Reading Family Aid were there to mingle with the attendees, hand out leaflets and explain about the work that we do.
She concluded saying "So in order to keep putting smiles on faces, we need an income of about £25000 per year. We are so grateful to St Andrew’s for choosing us as your Charity of the Year and for all that you have been doing for us. From those 11,500 children in poverty, and from us, thank you!"
On Saturday 21st June, the Reading Family Aid team rolled up to the Winnersh Fete, ready for a day of fun, fundraising, and fabulous community spirit!  The weather certainly kept us on our toes - with temperatures soaring above 30°C, it felt like summer had truly arrived. While the heat may have kept some folks indoors, we were thrilled to see so many friendly faces stop by our stall. And just to keep things interesting, the afternoon brought a surprise downpour! But like true British troopers, we dried off and carried on with smiles and sunshine returning soon after. Our stall was packed with excitement, featuring: 🦄 A magical “Guess the Name of the Unicorn” game 🎟️ A classic Tombola 🎁 A raffle with lovely prizes up for grabs  Despite the weather challenges, we raised a cheerful £167! It might not have been our biggest fundraising day, but every penny helps us support families in need — and we had a wonderful time connecting with the community.  A huge thank you to everyone who braved the heat (and the rain!) to support us. Your kindness means the world. 💖
You can find us at Earley Green Fair on Saturday 2nd August, where we’ll be selling lots of toys, games, books and jigsaws - a fabulous opportunity to pick up a bargain! Until next time — stay cool, stay kind, and keep spreading joy! On Saturday 14 June, some of our committee ran a stall at Woodley Carnival. We had lots of people stop by the stall and play our games to win fun prizes. It was a beautiful sunny day, and we enjoyed soaking up the carnival vibes. Here we are all set up with our stall at the start of the Carnival:  A highlight was seeing the Lancaster Bomber aeroplane fly over the carnival site!  Our surprise bags were popular with children and adults alike - each containing a mystery item.  The raffle prizes included various hampers themed on gardening, unicorns, games, and floral smellies.  Our attraction that scored the most attention was our lollipop game, where children could pay 50p to pick a lolly, and if it had a mark on the end of the stick they could also choose one of our house trained dogs to adopt! We are happy to report that every dog went home with a happy child on Saturday!  There was lots of entertainment going on throughout the day, including various acts performing on stage, and entertainers around the site such as these stilt walkers!   We raised a total of £250 on the day - this will help put more smiles on children’s faces through the fun outings, and gifts at Christmas, that we provide.
This was just the start of summer fete season for us - throughout the summer you’ll also be able to find us at Winnersh Fete on 21 June, and Earley Green Fair on 2 August. Hope to see you there! |
Our blogThis is where we share our news and inspiring stories of how people have supported us. Read previous newsletters here.
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