Today the park hosted the fourth Annual Treasure Hunt organised in partnership with local estate agent Julian Wadden. The weather held and it was great to see so many children and families enjoying the park again.
Task day volunteers...
Sadly we had to pick up loads of dog mess from around the flowerbeds and the area where we were putting the Treasure Hunt gazebos before we could get started but the rest of the day was very positive.
Volunteers were busy edging and weeding the flowerbeds, dead-heading daffodils and improving the Band Room garden by mulching the borders with wood-chippings. We also started the annual treatment of benches and installed paving slabs in front of one of the Boules Court benches to combat the heavy wear that the ground in front of these benches is seeing. There are several more to do and we were pleased to obtain recycled slabs via the council for this work.
We also had a team next to the Treasure Hunt gazebo doing the last day of our Little Growers scheme. This is where children can plant seeds in a bio-degradable cup, take them home to nurture and grow, and then we hope the will bring them back to plant in the park during the summer. We've actually had one pot back from the March plantings already!
4th Family Treasure Hunt organised by Julian Wadden
The fourth Family Treasure Hunt ran from 11am to 2pm and was aimed at 3 to 10 year olds with parents, grandparents or carers assisting as needed. There were two sets of clues, one for ages 3-5 years and the other for 6-10 years. Children hunted for clues to answer questions that would reveal the information needed to open the Treasure Chest for a share of the booty. Everyone who completed the hunt took away a fist full of chocolate gold pieces!
The Treasure Hunt was really well supported thanks mainly to the hard work of volunteer Di Jackson.
It was a FREE EVENT but there were collection buckets for donations and some fabulous raffle prizes donated by local businesses. The event programme was sponsored by local businesses too.
The event today raised a grand total of £2,154 for the park
This was made up of £139 donations on the day, £308 raffle takings, £1,657 of sponsorship and £50+ donated via Local Giving. This means that with the Council's Commuted Sums of £1,702 we now have £3,856 towards the replacement of the old Springers in the Infants Play Area. We need a minimum of £5,000 and ideally around £2K more than that. So we've a way to go yet and we'll be looking at other ways to boost the funding.
In the meantime, if you'd like to contribute you can still donate with Gift-Aid (if you are a UK Tax Payer) via our Local Giving Appeal: https://localgiving.org/appeal/marple-play-area/
Friends of the Park would like to say a huge thank you to Julian Wadden Estate Agents for organising this event with us and the following local businesses for their fantastic support:
Business Sponsors:
Mega £250 Sponsor: DJS Research.
Banner Sponsors: Brian Sharples & Sons, Hawk Green Cricket Club, Marple & District Electrical, Marple Health Shop, Ridings Opticians, Vernon Building Society.
£50 Premier Sponsors: Angkor Soul, Bloom Hearing Specialists, Brabyns Preparatory School, Byles Kitchens, Marple Local History Society, Marple News, Marple Physio, Roger Fisher Opticians, Shop Local Club Card, The Marple Website, Whittakers Fish Bar.
£30 Regular Sponsors: A.C.M. Financial Services, Brian Sharples & Sons, Hatters Arms, Imperium Personal Fitness Training, Inkbox of Marple, John Oldham Plastering, Kathy's Caterpillars Childcare, Little Button Bakery, LSA Technology, Malcolm Shaw & Son Ltd, Marple & District Electrical, Marple Drama, Marple SPAR at Rose Hill, Rhodes & Partners, Room Eighty Five, S Duddy Roofing Contractors & Merchants, Trek & Travel.
£25 Sponsor: The Springfield Hotel.
Raffle Prize Donors: All Things Nice, Benji’s Pet Food & Accessories, Chocabean Chocolate Creations, Chocolate Collective, Comix and Kollectables, Dress-Ability, Life Leisure / Target Fitness Marple, LSA Technology, Magpie Cottages & Spa, Marple Co-Op, Marple Golf Club, Nitrotek Ltd, Roger Fisher Opticians, Rope Race Climbing Centre, Semitone Studios, Strines Cafe, The Bookshop (Marple) Ltd, The Hound Dog Grooming Spa, The Navigation Lock 13, The Ring o' Bells Public House, Vernon Building Society, Whittaker's Fish Bar.