Last night the huge success, and real purpose of the Bypass Run and Walk was celebrated at a special meeting of the Alderley Edge and Bollin Valley Rotary Club.
The total raised from race entry fees and donations to walk along the new road exceeded £18,000 and the organisers were delighted to present cheques, ranging from £200 to £1500, to 27 locally based groups at Alderley Edge Cricket Club.
Alan Clarke, from Nether Alderley Parish Council, said "We know that 870 runners completed the 5km run and 6,000 people walked the road but when I started this project 20 months ago I never knew where it would lead. I had never organised anything like this before. I thought we'd be lucky to get 250 runners and 2000 walkers and it would never have got off the ground without the help of Andrew Henshall and Mr Running Club himself, Malcolm Fowler."
Andrew Henshall, President of Alderley Edge & Bollin Valley Rotary Club, said "We wanted to involve as many local charities as we could and organise an event so that every penny we raised went to those charities. With the help of our sponsors we achieved our aim and every penny we raised will go to charity."
Below is a list of all the charities and organisations who benefited from this fantastic community event, which many of us will remember for years to come.
Alderley Edge Action Group
Alderley Edge Allotment and Garden Society
Alderley Edge Amateur Operatic Society
Alderley Edge Catholic Church
Alderley Edge Country Primary School
Alderley Edge Festival
Alderley Edge Hockey Club
Alderley Edge Methodist Church
Alderley Edge Scouts
Alderley Edge Scout Marching Band
Animal Support Volunteers/South Manchester Wildlife Rescue
East Cheshire Hospice
Friends of Alderley Edge Park
Lindow Scouts
MAST
Nether Alderley Parish Hall
Nether Alderley Primary School
St. Mary's Church Nether Alderley
St Philips Nomads FC
Scouts – 6th Wilmslow
St Philip's and St James' Church
Seashell Trust
The Christie
The david lewis Centre
Time Out Group
Wheelies Sports Club
Wilmslow and District Lions Club
In addition to the £18,000 raised from entry fees thousands of pounds will have been raised by participants who collected sponsorship for their chosen charities.
Picture: Three out of the 4 main organisers: Alan Clarke (Nether Alderley Parish Council), Andrew Henshall (Alderley Edge & Bollin Valley Rotary Club) and Malcolm Fowler (Wilmslow Running Club). Unfortunately Sheila Hallas (Combined Charities Christmas Shops) was poorly and not able to attend last night's event.
Comments
Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.
There are a number of people suggesting the by-pass walk should become an annual event. The community spirit that this event has created should certainly give further support and consideration to this.
Graham Tyson
Chair of Governors, AECPS
We were delighted to be included in the list of local organisations deemed worthy of such support and thank all those who participated in making the event so successful.
From what I have read above, it is apparent that community spirit is ‘alive and kicking’. Please can we continue to keep it that way. A precedent appears to have been set; hopefully, something similar next year could be equally successful!
Well done everyone and thank you all once again.
The Friends of the Park