The former Mayor of the Borough of North East Lincolnshire, Cllr David Hasthorpe, has presented his three chosen charities with vital funds following his year in office.
A total of £6,300 was raised, which has been split between the local charities CatZero, Andy’s and Harbour Place.
In addition to the annual Mayoral fund-raising, and not one to shy away from a challenge, Cllr Hasthorpe also took on a skydive for St Andrew’s Hospice, throwing himself from a plane at 15,000ft. He raised another £1,500, and when gift-aided, hit £1,800.
During his year in office, he launched the first Civic Awards – recognising local worthy groups and individuals. People could nominate individuals, community groups or organisations for award categories, focusing on the community, environment, sport, and business.
He also flipped pancakes with Chaplain Mary Vickers to kick off Pancake Day, scooping first place in the event, which took place in St James Square outside Grimsby Minster.
Meanwhile, his charity ‘do’ was also a huge success. A total of £1,330 was raised at the event in October 2021, where more than 100 guests enjoyed an evening of live music, fish and chips and a tombola.
“Whilst it has been difficult to raise funds for charities over the past year, I am humbled by the people who have dug deep to assist my efforts to give to such deserving, local causes,” said Cllr Hasthorpe. “I would like to thank every single person who has helped, not only with cash, but with prizes and most of all, with their time. These monies will help so many who are in such need, whatever that need may be.”
Sarah Coulson, Programme Manager at CatZero, said: “We are delighted to have been one of the mayor’s charities for the last year and we thank Cllr Hasthorpe for his fantastic efforts. The money will directly support children, young people and families in Grimsby, which is now even more important as the cost of living continues to increase.”
Emily Aitken, Income Generation Manager for St Andrew’s Hospice, said: “We are thrilled to have been a part of the mayor’s charity fundraising during the last year. The hospice costs £5.2 million each year to run and the cash raised by Cllr Hasthorpe will contribute to our expansive services, including wellbeing and the relatively new Hospice at Home service.
“Of course, we were also delighted to receive £1,600 when Cllr Hasthorpe completed a charity skydive for Andy’s, last year, further contributing to the total amount and helping us to raise awareness of the hospice and what we do,” she added.
Robin Barr the Director of Harbour Place explained how demand had increased continually over the last few months, and as it did so, he and his colleagues were ever-grateful for the contributions they received.
“I am continually overwhelmed and surprised by the generosity of people in North East Lincolnshire, from someone coming in with a £5 donation, to larger organisations supporting us. We thank Cllr Hasthorpe for this donation from his charity year.”
Cllr Hasthorpe has been succeeded by Councillor Steve Beasant as the Worshipful the Mayor of the Borough of North East Lincolnshire, with Councillor Ian Lindley becoming Deputy Mayor.
The chains of office were passed over at a Mayor Making ceremony on May 19.
Article and images from NELC.
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