Brimington bowling club hits £40k fundraising milestone for Macmillan

From helping to fund the very first Macmillan nurse in Chesterfield to contributing

£22,000 to the brand new NGS Macmillan Unit at Chesterfield Royal Hospital, the club has played a significant role in supporting cancer services in the area.

The club started fundraising for the cancer charity in 2005 when secretary Pamela Wright organised their first Macmillan Coffee Morning, raising £240. She wanted to do something to support Macmillan after losing her father to cancer.

Since then, the event has grown each year and evolved into the ‘Annual Macmillan Day’, incorporating the usual cake stands and stalls, plus a full day bowling competition which

attracts bowlers from across Derbyshire and Yorkshire.

Pamela said: “Raising funds for Macmillan has given me satisfaction knowing it is being used to help so many local people in a time of need to access the support and benefits Macmillan can provide. Looking back 40 years ago when my father was ill, the Macmillan support and benefits available today would have been really helpful and appreciated by my family.

“Understanding what families experience at times like this made me realise that Macmillan fundraising was very important and the only way to provide the necessary support.”

Pamela first started fundraising for Macmillan when she was working in a village school in Chesterfield and raised £7 with her first Macmillan Coffee Morning.

Even a global pandemic couldn’t stop her and last year the club set up garden tables on

the roadside, made masks, jams, chutneys and pies to raise money for Macmillan.

Pamela said: “The World’s Biggest Coffee Day has become an amazing event organised

annually by local people, supported by local people, for the benefit of local people. The latter is particularly so as the money raised has gone to local Macmillan activities. None of this would have been possible without the help of many friends, the bowling club and its members.”

Hannah Lumb, Macmillan Fundraising Manager in Derbyshire, said: “Pamela and the bowling club have done so much for Macmillan over the years, raising an incredible amount of money which has already made a huge difference to the lives of local people affected by cancer. From helping to fund the very first Macmillan nurse in Chesterfield, to contributing to the NGS Macmillan Unit, this amazing group of people have enabled us to do whatever it takes for people affected by cancer when they need us most.”