Over 50 adults and juniors at Club Towers joined Managing Director, Matthew Towers and club member, Andrew Hayward in a monster charity effort that saw £7,250 raised for two local charities.
FACES and St John’s School in Kempston are the beneficiaries from an epic 24-hour squash and tennis marathon across Friday 6th October and Saturday 7th October.
Beginning at 17:00 on the Friday and playing through the night and into the weekend, both Matthew and Andrew only took brief toilet and refreshment breaks throughout the 24 hours, but they were helped along by the Club Towers community in what was one hell of a fundraising effort.
“I should have suggested 12 hours!”
“It was certainly much harder than I thought it would be!”, said Andrew at the conclusion of the event.
“When I got to 5am, I did think perhaps I should have suggested 12 hours! Thank you to everyone who played with me across the 24 hours, it really helped keep me going, and thank you also to those who donated.
“I’m thrilled we’ve raised so much for two such amazing charities.”
There were echoes from Managing Director of Club Towers, Matthew Towers following a gruelling night and day.
“The challenge was every bit as hard as I expected and I certainly could not have got to the end without a lot of support from my playing partners, who kept me going when times were tough.”
“Many thanks to all that helped in any way and supported through their generous donations.”
This is the latest fundraising effort from Club Towers, where members choose to support two local charities every year, raising over £50,000 in total since the club opened in 2017.
FACES, based on Church Lane and offering a range of family and children support services, along with St John’s School were the ones chosen for 2023-24, and will receive all of the proceeds from the monumental challenge.
Thank you
Michaela Martindale from FACES thanked the duo and the rest of the club for their fundraising efforts.
“We would like to offer our gratitude to Andrew and Matthew for undertaking such a challenging feat for us and to all the members for their support in participating in the event to raise money for FACES.
“As a small charity supporting local residents, the money raised from events like these can go directly in to ensuring families get the right support at the right time to improve their lives.”
Amanda Rizzo, Assistant Headteacher at St John’s also wished to share thanks from the school.
“All the pupils and staff at St John’s Special School are over the moon to be supported by the fantastic members of Towers Health and Racquets Club.
“Donations are vitally important for us to be able to provide the best quality resources that enhance and develop the curriculum for our pupils.
“Special thanks to Matthew and Andrew for undertaking such an ambitious challenge, we are extremely grateful and hope it hasn’t put you off playing in the future!”
It’s not too late to add to the fundraising efforts. You can still donate to the fundraiser via this link.
