Golf club fundraisers defy pandemic to raise over £8,000 for local rehabilitation centre
In 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted their fundraising plans, Ladies’ Captain Sue Pitcher agreed with Club Captain Rob Mill and Seniors’ Captain Jim Neal to choose a joint charity of the year for the first time.
Sue said: “It has been a challenging year, but we are delighted to have raised so much for such a worthy cause.”
The Colman Centre for Specialist Rehabilitation is run by Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust and provides multi-disciplinary assessment and therapy for adults and young people, including an outpatient service that offers individually designed rehabilitation programmes for patients with highly complex health needs such as acquired brain injury, spinal injury or neuromuscular conditions.
The funds will be used to purchase specialist equipment that will help patients with their rehabilitation, as well as outdoor furniture for staff and patients.
Sue said: “One of our members has been receiving treatment at the centre and they have done a great job. It is good to be able to support them.”
The main fundraising event of the year was the Three Captains' Charity Day, held in September, along with an auction of ‘four-ball’ vouchers, which have been exchanged with golf clubs from around the region.
Other fundraising included the donation of entry fees, raffles, and sales of a specially-designed calendar and jams and preserves kindly gifted by Thetford Golf Club member Liz Wigg.
Among specialist equipment the fundraising money will enable the centre to purchase is a NeuroBall therapeutic device, which supports arm and hand rehabilitation. Staff are also hoping to purchase a specialist mobility aid that will help patients requiring gait re-education.
Rachel Hardy, a physiotherapist at the Colman Centre, said: “We’re really delighted to be able to purchase new equipment with the money raised by Thetford Golf Club. Specialist equipment like the NeuroBall and the gait trainer can aid our patients enormously in their recovery.
“We’re extremely grateful to everyone involved in the fundraising effort – especially in the challenging circumstances of last year.”
Norfolk Community Health and Care Charitable Fund uses donations to enhance facilities, purchase specialist equipment and support staff and patient wellbeing across the trust to benefit current and future patients. To make a donation, or for more information, please visit: https://www.justgiving.com/norfolkcommunityhealthandcare
