Goodyear Dunlop Nears £50,000 Charity Goal

While economic pressures can result in people rethinking their spending, they have not prevented Goodyear Dunlop’s friends and associates homing in on the company’s target of donating £50,000 in a year and a half to help build a playground for the Childhood and Adolescent Mental Health Service ward at Birmingham Children’s Hospital. Since April 2008 fundraisers have been working hard, with a range of activities taking place including a charity ball, dress down days, truck tyre rolls and a bicycle ride from the company’s head office in Birmingham to Paris. In total £48,000 has been donated to the charity, almost reaching the total in ten months.

Goodyear Dunlop managing director Mark Brickhill helped to push the fund raising figure close to the £50,000 mark with dealers sponsoring him to ‘walk the ship’s plank’ on a recent dealer incentive trip. His 35ft jump raised £2,000. Speaking about the charitable activities, Brickhill stated, “I have been immensely proud of the dedication and enthusiasm the company’s associates have put into helping our local community. As they have worked so hard to build this playground I thought the least I could do is make the jump. Our dealers have helped fundraising through supporting events such as our charity ball, and I’m grateful for their support on top of our associates own fund raising.”

Tracy Marsh, director of fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital added, “the role of the play area in the treatment and rehabilitation of our CAMHS children cannot be under-stated; it will help relieve stress, encourage social interaction, and simply be a vehicle for the children to be children, i.e. play and have fun! Without the support of Goodyear Dunlop, we would not have been able to build the play area; we can not thank them enough.”