CRICKETING legend Sir Ian Bothan returned to Worcester to hand over a cheque for £60,000 to the Rory the Robot Prostate Cancer appeal.
The former England and Worcestershire all-rounder spoke to television presenter Nick Owen and an audience of more than 360 people during an event organised by the Worcestershire Ambassadors at Sixways.
The Worcestershire Ambassadors had already agreed to match fund the sum raised during the ‘An evening with Sir Ian Botham’ event, meaning Sir Ian was asked to present a cheque for £60,000 to ambassador Ian Jukes, chairman and founder of the Rory Appeal.
Vince Hopkins, Chair of the Worcestershire Ambassadors said: “These funds have ensured that the NHS Trust will now procure the much needed machine in the coming months.
“The Rory Appeal has raised £320,000 in just three years under the driving leadership of Ian Jukes and the hard work and dedication of the Rory Appeal committee.
“The Ambassadors have now contributed £100,000 to this: my wholehearted thanks to the Ambassadors involved in organising the event, which was one of my proudest moments as chairman,” he added.
Mr Jukes said: “Sir Ian Botham and Nick Owen were both star attractions and very popular with the audience.
“I can only describe the evening as ‘amazing’ – what a showcase for how dedicated the Worcestershire Ambassadors are to driving this county forward.
“Their commitment to supporting Rory the Robot Appeal is truly phenomenal,” he added.
The event was organised and led by Phil Dutton, Tracey Hopkins, Yvonne Tivey from SME Solicitors with organisational support too from Phil’s Handelsbanken team.
Support and sponsorship from Gemini Accident Repairs, Browns at the Quay, DRP and ARMOS Promotions was significant as it meant that all of the ticket money from the 360 guests went direct to the appeal.
Over the past 12 years, the Worcestershire Ambassadors have raised nearly half a million pounds towards Worcestershire charities.
Visit www.worcestershireambassadors.com for more information about the group.
Log on to www.worcestershire.nhs.uk/rorytherobot for more on the Rory the Robot appeal.
