Arranged by Lorraine Bell, who is a strong supporter of the work of Sanctuary in Chichester, a highly successful fundraising event was held on 12th November in the convivial and welcoming surroundings of Slipper Sailing Club, Emsworth, very kindly offered for the evening by the Club.
Lorraine has supported Sanctuary in Chichester with specialist mental health training over recent months. Wanting to help further with fundraising, she put considerable effort into organising a large number of generous donations to form the basis for an Auction of Promises. Attended by many with an interest in what Sanctuary in Chichester does, and accompanied by some uplifting music by John Gleadall, the auction proved lively, with plenty of banter between different tables. Encouraging competitive bidding, Lisa Walker, the auctioneer for the evening, proved very effective in persuading individuals to part with their money. The outcome was an overall total of £3,000 of donations, through the auction, augmented by generous additional donations.
With other Sanctuary volunteers present, Mike Mansergh (pictured above), the charity’s trustee lead on befriending, provided a short summary of the considerable range of activities through which Sanctuary in Chichester supports over 450 individual refugees in the Chichester area. He expressed appreciation on behalf of the charity for the enormous generosity and interest of those present, saying how important any contribution is to help with making refugees welcome and safe in our community and setting them up on a positive pathway, with the aim of achieving independence from State and charity support in their future lives in the UK.