Welcome from UBS on Merseyside!
It is fast approaching Spring and incredibly, another year has gone by and it has been a very busy one here on Merseyside! Celebrations have taken place to commemorate our 150th Anniversary and record numbers of beneficiaries have joined UBS and have been able to receive that little extra bit of support from us to help them to remain independent.
A round up of events last year included a “Victorian Afternoon” in March, which was hosted by Liverpool College Sixth Form Performing Arts Students, who were keen to be involved in the anniversary celebrations. A wonderful time was enjoyed by some of our beneficiaries who were entertained by fabulous singing and drama recitals, performed by talented students, dressed in Victorian style! Guests enjoyed a delicious afternoon tea and received a special parting gift from the students.
May saw your Regional Development Officer and a group of dedicated UBS Volunteers walking the Coastal Walk from Seacombe to Thurstaston, a total of 15 miles in all! We raised £852 through sponsorship in aid of UBS on Merseyside! Let’s hope we can do as well again this year! Time to get our trainers out again!
June was wet and miserable! However, despite the wet weather, a warm welcome was had at our annual Summer Get Together! A delicious buffet with strawberries and cream was provided and the lilting sounds of the Norman Roy Band chased away any summertime blues! Bingo, a raffle and craft stalls added to the entertainment and with excellent volunteer support from Liverpool College Students, HSBC staff, the British Red Cross and our UBS regular volunteers we all enjoyed our afternoon; meeting up with new friends and old. My son, Philip, provided additional volunteer help and worked with UBS for a week during his school work experience. He really enjoyed the party, meeting the guests and helping to prepare for the event beforehand and afterwards!
28th November was the date we had our UBS Christmas Party! With the 150th Anniversary in mind, and the success of the Victorian Afternoon, some special entertainers in the form of Liverpool College Sixth Form Students joined the fabulous Norman Roy Band to sing a medley of songs for us! Dancing to the music and singing along to lots of old favourites, meant that the afternoon was a great success! As usual, we had a game or two of bingo, a raffle and craft stalls. It was lovely for everyone to meet up again in time for Christmas!
During this time UBS has been helping a John Moore’s University student to complete her studies by providing her with a voluntary work placement. Jennie has proved to be a valuable addition to our UBS team and spent a week working with Head Office staff in London, gaining experience of how UBS operates and since then Jennie has been working with me on Merseyside. Her work has produced an evaluation report about what sort of events beneficiaries would like to have in future, and where we can improve on these events. So hopefully, we will have even more to look forward to in the future, tailored to our beneficiaries' choices!
Our annual fundraising event was held on 15th December 2007 in Heswall Hall, Wirral. A Christmas Carol Concert sung for us by the Castle Singers who chose UBS as one of the local causes they support. As Charles Dickens was a founding member of UBS, it seemed appropriate to host a carol concert! His book “A Christmas Carol”, on publication immediately endeared Dickens to the public and its sentiments have been associated with celebrating Christmas ever since. The Mayor and Mayoress of Wirral were in attendance and over 200 guests enjoyed a fabulous festive start to the Christmas season!
Chris Burgess, a second year student, studying Marketing and Media at University in Leeds, has worked with me to include a local page about what is happening in Merseyside so that in future, anything new and exciting will be reported on here!
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