19/09/08 British 10k London Run totals The participants’ aches, pains and blisters are probably a dim and distant memory by now, but this year’s British 10k London Run on the 6th July was a huge success as a fundraiser for the Group. A total of 10 runners pounded the capital’s streets in support of the Samson Centre, raising the incredible total of £5,536.26 in the process. The breakdown was as follows: • Chris Elliott & Caspar Swanston £2,500.76 • Jan Fowler £1,511.00 • Neil Poulson £743.00 • The Five Ladies (Jose Barnett, Michelle Cottrell, Lisa Hudson, Claire Morton & Kirstie Smillie) £531.50 • Dave Bower £250.00 What a fantastic effort by all concerned – well done and thanks to every one of you! 17/09/08 White Lion Night – a roaring success? Well, it’s taken some time and several threats to send in the heavy mob, but physio Helen Brodbin and fitness instructor Claire Hubbard have finally been persuaded to file their reports of the Samson Night which took place on the 31st July at the White Lion, Milford. Click here for their recollections of the night’s events. 02/08/08 Lingfield – a sure bet! Two Kitchings, a brace of Fardells, a couple of Crowther-Smiths and a whole herd of Hamblys met on the grass at Lingfield Racecourse on Saturday for a picnic before the evening’s racing. The weather was glorious, the company was convivial, and a few of them even watched the racing! The MSTG(G) had been given permission to hold a collection at the course during the second half of the meeting, so once the third race was over everyone made their way to their chosen spots and the money was soon raining down into the buckets. Lingfield novice Carol Kitching didn’t think much of it to start with: "This is a waste of time", she grumbled as she passed Fleur Crowther-Smith, on her way to find a more lucrative spot in which to stand. It was quite ironic, therefore, that her bucket was found to contain the huge sum of £328.35, and she virtually had to be prised away from her spot by the exit gates at the end of the evening. All in all the evening was a great success, raising the princely sum of £1,194.04 for the Samson Centre. And to cap it all, the evening was rounded off by a free concert by an Abba tribute band - just the thing to send everyone home with a smile on their faces! 01/08/08 The credit crunch is biting! Evidence that the credit crunch is real came with the Godalming town centre collection on Saturday 26th July, which raised a total of £460.95 – sharply down on the £674.13 collected at the same event last year. Of course, the heady combination of the first weekend of the summer holidays and some glorious weather – all too rare this summer – may also have been responsible for keeping people away from the shops, but our stalwart collectors all reported that things were very quiet in the town centre. Still, every pound collected makes a difference, and let’s just hope that things pick up in time for our next street collection in Haslemere on the 6th September! 27/07/08 Chandlers School Dance-a-Thon On Friday, 4th July, the pupils of Chandlers School in Witley, Surrey, attended by two of MSTG(G) Chairman John Hambly’s daughters, Megan and Grace, held a Dance-a-Thon to raise funds for the Samson Centre. The day was a huge success, and John has been presented with cheques totalling £1,327 since the event. Our picture below shows Grace, mum Marion, John and Megan posing with one of the more spectacular cheques. Megan very kindly agreed to describe the day for us: "After seeing my dad on Deal or No Deal, one of the Teaching Assistants called Mrs. Jones who works at my school decided that she wanted to help Samson. She and Grace’s teacher, Miss Lane, arranged for all the girls in the school to take part in a sponsored dance-a-thon where we had to learn 5 different moves in a routine. On Friday 4th July we all gathered in the playground and a dance teacher showed us the steps and then our partners counted so that they could make sure that we had learnt them properly. We did street dancing and hip-hop. It was great fun and lovely to be part of such a great event. All my teachers and friends have been really supportive, and dad came to an assembly to be presented with the cheque which is all thanks to the staff, parents and pupils of Chandler School." Our final picture shows an attentive school assembly listening to John describing the work of the Samson Centre and thanking all involved for their hard work and support. 22/07/08 The fundraising Wheels keep turning! It was way back on the 15th May that the ladies of the Inner Wheel of Guildford held a coffee morning at the Samson Centre, and very successful it was, too. On Thursday 3rd July, at one of the Samson Centre’s regular coffee mornings, Olive Crosby and several of the Inner Wheel ladies turned up to present MSTG(G) chairman John Hambly with a cheque for £1,000. Pictured (right) with John and Olive are Graham and Pene Jelly of the Samson Centre, and the Inner Wheel’s Amelia Sayer and Audrey Heath. A fantastic effort, for which all at the Samson Centre are extremely grateful. 14/07/08 British 10k Run The British London 10k Run took place on the 6th July, with a number of runners taking part in aid of the Samson Centre. Full details of the amounts raised are still awaited, but we have had a report from one of the runner, Neil Poulson, who successfully completed the course, raising over £520 (so far!) for the Centre in the process. Click here for a Neil’s-eye view of the event.