We know that even a small company can make a big difference by raising money for a targeted charity. Rather than take a scatter-gun approach, we choose one charity for the year and really throw ourselves into making some serious money.
This year we ran, swam, quizzed and baked to raise money for our chosen charity, the Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Trust.
We started our fundraising year with a visit from the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. Claire Phillips explained about this debilitating and life-limiting disease, and showed us how fundraising can make a huge difference to the lives of people with CF. Research continues to increase life expectancy and offer new ways of managing the condition.
We held our first Sequel Meal Deal in April, bringing in our signature lunch dishes to share at work and forking out £5 a head for a good feed, making £161 for the Trust. We followed this up with a second Meal Deal in November, but this time with a side of friendly competition in the form of a charity table footie tournament, raising a further £115.
Pleased with our success, we organised a Sequel quiz for July that included this puzzling ‘merged faces’ round. (Is that really Mary Berry and Donald Trump? Answers at the bottom of the page).
Sequel’s Sprinting Sisters (AKA Becky Leonard, Jessie Watts, Christina Papathanasiou, Rudina Nuredini and Rozi Pearson) bounced their way to an amazing £870 by tackling the inflatable 5K in London in early September. The course of giant inflatable obstacles was fun but challenging and they completed it in just under 45 minutes.
“We enjoyed taking part as a team. We had to climb over and under things, which isn’t easy when everything’s inflatable and wobbling,” says Rozi. Despite a friction burn on the last obstacle – a vertical slide – Rozi and the ‘sisters’ had a great time.
Not to be outdone, Phil Steed, Head of Creative donned his wetsuit for a chilly 3.8km open water swim and was delighted to raise £569 in sponsorship.
Then it got really serious when Jenna Ahma, Project Manager, took part in the 12-mile Tough Mudder challenge. The course included some very tough obstacles featuring lots of cold mud, high walls to scale and tunnels to scramble through. She made £1,181 for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. It’s a cause dear to Jenna as CF affects members of her partner’s family.
“It wasn’t quite as hard as I thought it would be,” she says. “There were so many people taking part and the spirit was wonderful; we were all helping each other.” She’s already signed up for next year.
We also supported the Trust by appearing in its awareness raising Christmas campaign. Some of the Sequel team were photographed in Christmas jumpers and we were named as corporate partners in the campaign, which was used on the Trust’s website, email and Facebook.
In all, we were thrilled to give more than £3,000 to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust this year.
Claire Phillips adds: “Charity partnerships like the one we have enjoyed with Sequel are incredibly important to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. They are a valuable way of not only raising vital funds for the charity, but also to raise awareness of life with CF.
“We are particularly grateful to everyone at Sequel who took fundraising to their hearts this year, however muddy the challenge, and for agreeing to be the face of our corporate Christmas campaign. All of which contributes to our goal of creating a life unlimited by CF.”
To find out more about the Cystic Fibrosis Trust and see how they help people affected by Cystic Fibrosis, visit: https://www.cysticfibrosis.org.uk/
(Quiz answers)
