Official charity for 2012/13 gets cash boost from Ospreys
The Ospreys have handed over a cheque for £4,519.59 to Velindre Cancer Centre’s Stepping Stones Appeal, official charity of the region for the 2012/13 season.
The region teamed with the charity to launch a limited edition charity jersey for the year which was worn by the team on LV= Cup duty, with a cash donation being made to Stepping Stones for every jersey sold.
In addition, a matchday draw took place in the Supporters Village pre-match at each home game with supporters invited to make a donation in return for a chance to win a prize, raising much needed revenue for the appeal.
Andrew Morris, Head of Fundraising at Velindre, said:
“We have had a fantastic 12 months as the official charity of the Ospreys, and as well as this generous donation, we have also held a number of other fundraising activities which have helped to raise even more money for our lung cancer research campaign the Stepping Stones Appeal.
“The highlight was probably our Question of Sport evening when the Ospreys team narrowly beat the Blues with the final question. The Ospreys team made up of Alun Wyn Jones, Dan Biggar and Jonathan Humphreys were extremely pleased that Adam Jones was also on their side!
“Velindre would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone associated with the Ospreys for their fantastic support.”
The activities are still ongoing with the inaugural Ospreys Victory over Cancer Walk taking place at the Gnoll Country Park on Sunday 28 July, enter online at: www.velindrefundraising.com/bookonline.
Velindre Cancer Centre launched the Stepping Stones Appeal, a lung cancer research programme, to both increase awareness of their work and to raise the money necessary to continue to fund and expand their research programmes.
The relationship between the Ospreys and Velindre Cancer Centre has also seen the region supporting other activities and initiatives organised on behalf of the Stepping Stones Appeal including a special Question of Sport evening at the Towers Hotel, events which have raised additional funding for the charity.
Ospreys Chief Operations Officer, Andrew Hore, said:
“It gives me enormous pleasure to make this donation to Velindre on behalf of Ospreys Rugby. The Stepping Stones Appeal is one that is close to most Welsh rugby fans hearts after the Captain’s Climb almost two years ago and within Ospreylia, our relationship has only strengthened the charity’s existing links with the rugby community even further.
“Lung cancer is a terrible disease which has impacted on us all at some stage. The cash donation of £4,519 will no doubt be put to good use in the fight against lung cancer, while the relationship will have helped to raise awareness of their work significantly.”
There are nearly 2,200 people diagnosed with lung cancer in Wales each year, with an increasing number who have never smoked. More people are surviving cancer than ever before thanks to early detection and better treatment. Although lung cancer is the most common form of cancer death in Wales, lung cancer research has been relatively poorly supported compared to other higher profile forms of cancer. It is estimated by 2015 there will be a 30% increase in the most common forms of cancer in Wales.
Following the success of a number of fundraising initiatives including the Captains Climb to summit Mount Kilimanjaro, Mair’s Walk and the Stepping Stones Rugby Gala Dinners, over £350,000 has been invested enabling the Wales Cancer Bank to be able to collect lung cancer samples for the first time ever. These samples will then be used by researchers around the world to improve understanding of lung cancer, which will help in the search for new treatments.