IN BRIEF
CHESHIRE FREEMASONS
DONATE £25K
TO CHARITY STORRAR COWDRY
FUNDRAISER FOR THE
NEURO THERAPY CENTRE
Friday 27th July saw a delegation of Cheshire Freemasons,
led by Provincial Grand Master RWBro Stephen Blank,
attend the official opening of the ‘Better Lives Centre’ at
the Bridge Wellness Gardens in Ellesmere Port. Storrar Cowdry Solicitors in White Friars Chester
recently organised a drinks reception at their offices to
raise much needed funds for a local charity, The Neuro
Therapy Centre, in Saltney.
The Wellness Gardens, which opened in 2015, have needed a permanent
structure at its ‘heart’ for some time. To turn what was a dream
into a reality required the support and donations from a number of
organisations including Cheshire Freemasons who donated £25,000. The
charity’s main purpose is to support those with mental health and learning
difficulties and to create jobs for the long-term unemployed by growing
and selling fruit, vegetables, salads and herbs to the local community.
Bridge Wellness Gardens provides a therapeutic environment for people
suffering from a range of mental health conditions, including depression
and post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as those with mental and
physical learning disabilities. It offers support and activities for young
people struggling at school, older clients suffering loneliness and social
isolation and everyone in between who just want to come and hang out
on the farm. The charity, based on Mill Lane, is a working horticulture
farm which first began operating in 2015. Louise Eccleston, Partner of Storrar Cowdry, is also a Trustee of the
Centre and explained that it costs over £8,000 every week to run the
Centre. Louise said, "It is so hard to raise the much needed funds,
hence we decided to organise a fun event for ladies."
Francis Ball, Chairman of Bridge Community Wellness Gardens and
Farm, said: “The opening of the Better Lives Centre would not have
been possible without the hugely generous support of a number of major
benefactors as well as smaller donations from many other people in our
community. It would also not have been possible without the tireless
support of our dedicated team. Since we opened in 2015, we have worked
with hundreds of people of all ages, from school children to the long-term
unemployed, helping them through what are often extremely difficult
times. The Better Lives Centre will enable us to increase the amount of
people we can support and the variety of work we can do to help them
literally grow their lives.”
Stephen Blank said, “It is inspirational to see the work carried out
at the Gardens. The fact it provides both a tranquil place to relax and
also operates as a working farm, makes the project invaluable to the
community it supports. I have seen the garden project evolve over the
years and it is incredible to see how much has been achieved in such a
short time. The Better Lives Centre is the icing on the cake and I know I
join with many in wishing Francis and his team all the best for the future
- long may they make a difference to the lives of those they help.”
10 wirrallife.com
Louise who lives in Ruthin and is a member of The Ruthin Panto
Society, went on to say: "The Centre offers much needed support
and advice to members diagnosed with a number of neurological
conditions, through exercise, treatment and mutual support in a very
caring environment."
The Centre provides practical support and therapies to members and
their families through:
• helping members manage the symptoms of a wide range of
neurological conditions including MS, Parkinson's, MND and ME
• supporting nearly 500 people with conditions and their carers
across North Wales, Cheshire and the Wirral;
• providing regular exercise and fitness for improving mobility,
balance and wellbeing; and
• offering members treatment through neurological physiotherapy,
hyperbaric oxygen, use of the on-site gym and a number of
complementary therapies.
She also thanked all those who attended the event and hoped they
had fun trying out the skin care products from Tropic, courtesy of
Lisa Forbes, trying on a number of summer kaftans designed by Julie
Austin Kay of Kaftan Heaven, as well as enjoying the chance to network
and enjoy drinks & canapés, whilst taking part in the raffle. A number
of local businesses provided raffle prizes and the event was supported
by local professionals from the Chester business community. The event
raised £763 for the Neuro Therapy Centre.
For more information, call Louise Eccleston on 01244 400567
or Chris Talbot 01244 675630.