Helping our Community

Local charities have paid tributes to Swoffers’ impressive fundraising ability following the agency’s hugely successful Ball, which raised a fantastic £8,000 for hard working Guernsey causes.

Thanks to the determination of staff and a great level of support from those attending the glittering event, four local charities can now buy much-needed equipment or use the donation for running costs.

Swoffers has a long history of supporting local charities and has raised hundreds of thousands of pounds over the years. This latest initiative has enabled them to donate funds to the WRVS, Les Bourgs Hospice, the Breathe Easy Guernsey branch of the British Lung Foundation and the Guernsey Bereavement Service.

Deciding which of the island’s scores of worthy charities to support proved a job in itself. Swoffers invited applications from all local charities for funds and the Directors then considered each one individually.

The responses were so strong that it was decided to increase the number of groups supported.

‘What has been a real eye-opener is how many people are working away quietly behind the scenes on appeals that have real community value,’ said Swoffers Managing Director Matthew Henry.

He urged other local companies, who might not be currently involved in supporting Guernsey charities, to help such worthwhile organisations.

‘It was incredibly difficult to decide who to support. We had planned to give money to just a couple of local charities but the response was so heartfelt that we have selected more,’ he said. In fact, the decision was so hard that Swoffers made a personal donation of £1,000 to a fifth charity, the Guernsey Stroke Association deciding that this important organization for sufferers and their families should be added to the list of recipients.

The final list of charities chosen reflected their highly important role in the island community.

WRVS organizer Jacqueline Bromley said the Russels Day Centre is ‘a lifeline’ for many elderly local people. The WRVS needs special recliner chairs and small tables for their popular Centre. The recliners raise up to meet the sitter so are ideal for those with mobility difficulties. The £1,500 donation will help provide these.

Describing the need for the Guernsey branch of the British Lung Foundation, Pam Preece said her husband suffers from linked illnesses and the charity helped to provide equipment that made life easier and less stressful. Clinical Advisor Rebecca Sherrington said the £1,000 donation would enable essential equipment to be bought. The charity is organizing a pulmonary rehabilitation group and the money ensures that all necessary equipment can be provided for this.

Les Bourgs Hospice, which received £2,750, has been supported by Swoffers for several years and the Directors felt that they wanted to maintain that link this year.

A similar amount was handed to the relatively new charity, the Guernsey Bereavement Service. It provides counseling and much-needed support for those who experience the loss of a loved one.

‘We will continue during 2007 to raise funds for local charities. Swoffers is one of the island’s longest-established estate agencies and we are very proud of our island home and all of the worthwhile charitable work that goes on. None of our fundraising would work without help from those who attend our events. We are grateful that our clients and supporters are so generous when we launch various appeals,’ he said.

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