This weekend saw Hope House celebrate an outstanding 21 years of providing the very best of care and support to children and their families, at a Birthday Extravaganza hosted by The British Ironwork Centre.
On Saturday evening, guests donned their finery to attend the Hope House Gala Ball. Preparations for the evening began with Hope House and the staff at the Ironworks dressing the huge marquee with balloons and safari animal sculptures, complementing the circus theme perfectly. Guests took part in live auctions on the night raising a staggering £50,000 for the charity. Amongst the amazing prizes was a Diamond ring created by the Centre’s resident silversmith, as well as much sought after tickets for travel on the Orient Express.
As the evening’s festivities drew to an end, a stunning firework display in the grounds of the Centre ensured the occasion was marked in style. The charity even received a special message from talented singer and TV personality, Aled Jones, congratulating them on reaching this milestone.
On Sunday the Ironworks surrendered their grounds to make way for the biggest children’s party Oswestry has ever seen! Amongst the Metal safari sculptures and decorative gazebos the Ironworks welcomed over 2000 visitors, all of whom were able to enjoy a vast array of entertainment from fire breathers to jugglers and clowns and bubble men, all in aid of celebrating the charity’s fantastic achievement.
Fundraising manager Vanessa Thomas said: “Everyone at Hope House is so delighted with the results of the weekend. We raised an incredible £50,000 at the Ball on Saturday night and a further £8,000 at the Birthday Extravaganza on Sunday, making it our most fabulous fundraising weekend ever.”
“Nearly 500 people came to the Ball, and more than 2,000 to the fun day and it was amazing to see everyone having such a fabulous time and coming together to help us help some very special children and families. We can’t thank the local community enough for their wonderful support, and also our fabulous sponsors The British Ironwork Centre, GS and PA Reeves Timber and Select-a-Skip.”
The Ironworks will continue to support Hope house, as they have done in the past, in any way possible. The Centre’s next big event on Saturday July 16th is the vintage transport rally, which will see all money raised go towards Hope House.