Staff from Bristol-based property and construction consultancy, Gleeds, have battled it out against their counterparts in Cardiff to cycle 50 miles against the clock and raise money for two local charities.
Between Monday 21st September and Friday 25th September 1500 staff across Gleeds’ 56 international offices volunteered one working day to participate in local fundraising events in an attempt to raise £130,000 for charity in one week – one hundred pounds for every year the organisation has been in business.
In the South West, 45 fundraisers from Gleeds ditched their day jobs to raise over £8000 for Bristol’s St Peter’s Hospice and Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital in Cardiff, which will be split equally between the two charities. The usually desk-bound team set out from Gleeds’ new Cardiff office on Greyfriars Road, crossing the iconic Severn Bridge and tackling a few of Bristol’s grueling hills, before reaching the finish line at the organisation’s Bristol Parkway office.
Their target was to complete the bike race in under four hours, which was smashed by Gleeds Accountant, Greg Hughes who crossed the finish line in 2 hours 3 minutes. He was closely followed by Gleeds’ director for the south west region, Terry Langdon, who peddled-in an hour later.
After catching his breath and commenting on Gleeds’ fundraising endeavour, Mr Langdon said: “Though a few of us feel a bit worse for wear, I’m extremely proud of the fundraising efforts of both offices. We’ve had incredible support from family and friends within the industry, as a result we’ve beaten our fundraising target by £2000. It makes the achy legs all worthwhile!”
Edd Smith, corporate fundraiser at St Peter’s Hospice said: “We’d like to say a huge thank you to the team at Gleeds for supporting us during their marathon cycle ride. It was a great effort by all and we’re very grateful for the funds raised.
“As Bristol’s only adult hospice, St Peter’s Hospice cares for more than 2,670 patients each year as well as supporting family members.
“All services are provided free of charge but this care costs around £18,000 a day. For around £14,000 of that, the hospice relies on the generosity of individuals and businesses like Gleeds.
“The money raised from this event will go towards caring for patients and their families when they need us.”
The charity bike-off was part of a series of events taking place under the banner of Gleeds’ Global Challenge. So far, the business has raised in excess of £98,000 with fundraising tallies still flooding in from Gleeds’ international offices.
Mr Langdon added: “We’re hopeful that once all of the money is in, we’ll have smashed our £130,000 target. Here in the South West, we’ve found that not only has the Global Challenge inspired people to push themselves out of their comfort zone, it’s also brought people together. Working towards a common goal for the benefit of those who are less fortunate, has been really humbling and motivated us all to want to beat our local fundraising target.”
To find out how you can support Gleeds’ Global Challenge head to justgiving.com/gleeds
