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It’s eyes down for festive fun and fundraising at an event in aid of a Warwickshire children’s charity next month.

The Christmas Charity Boogie Bingo Extravaganza has been organised by Leamington Spa Soroptimists in aid of Molly Ollys.

Guests can compete for holiday-themed prizes in multiple rounds of bingo and other fun games and stalls throughout the evening as well as enjoy a Christmas Platter buffet.

There will also be a chance to learn more about the charity and other ways it can be supported.

President of Leamington Soroptimists, Catherine Williamson learned more about the work of the charity in a recent interview with Rachel for her podcast Gobsmacked! which is being broadcast in January.

She said: “Supporting Molly Ollys is our way of bringing light and hope to children with life-threatening illnesses and their families, especially during the festive season.

“Their incredible work touches the lives of so many by creating special moments and providing essential support. We’re proud to rally our community for a night of fun, laughter, and giving back to help make these wishes come true.”

The Warwick-based charity works to support children with terminal or life-limiting illnesses and their families and help with their emotional wellbeing. As well as providing wishes, they donate therapeutic toys and books to both children directly and to hospitals throughout the UK.

Olly The Brave forms part of an Olly The Brave pack that has now been handed out to more than 70 hospitals or health centres, along with a set of books from the charity’s exclusive Olly The Brave series. The mascot has his own Hickman line and a detachable mane which helps to explain and normalise the effects of chemotherapy.

Part of more than £4m raised to date, has also been used to fund the first Molly Olly consultant in paediatric medicine at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

Founder Rachel Ollerenshaw said: “Molly Ollys are very grateful to the Leamington Soroptomists for reaching out to us and offering their support. The Boogie Bingo looks great fun, we are all looking forward to it and great that we can raise funds and awareness.

“We are extremely busy with requests from families who need our support. They face many challenges, and our help can make a very real difference but it would not be possible without events like the Boogie Bingo. So please join us.”

For more information about the charity, visit www.mollyolly.co.uk The Christmas Charity Boogie Bingo Extravaganza takes place on Monday, December 9^th 7-10.30pm at St Patrick’s Irish Club, Riverside in Leamington. Tickets are £25 and can be booked here.

Catherine’s Gobsmacked! podcast episodes can be heard here.

Coventry-based charity Feed The Hungry UK is appealing for local businesses to help fill a shipping container with enough food for children in Zimbabwe.

The new Boxes of Hope Campaign comes following a stark warning by the United Nations that over half of the nation’s rural population will be ‘food insecure’ by early next year. It comes in the wake of a food crisis that’s been exacerbated by a combination of recent weather extremes including extended droughts and soaring temperatures.

This Christmas, the humanitarian aid charity Feed The Hungry UK is asking businesses and organisations to respond to this crisis by filling a shipping container with enough food to provide 285,000 meals.

The challenge is for around 30 business partners to each raise £2,500 – enough money for 10,000 rice meals.

The Projects Director for Feed The Hungry, Gavin Kibble MBE, said: “We’ve worked in Zimbabwe for over 20 years and already have established feeding programmes in Harare. Because of the challenging conditions that have led to crop failure, we’ve started new programmes in more rural areas of Zimbabwe. Now, we’re regularly feeding 19,500 children every school day.

“These rice meals are cheap – just 25p per meal – but the mix of ingredients in each meal gives the carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals that a child needs to thrive. We’ve seen whole schools where malnutrition has been eradicated because the students are regularly eating this food. Businesses can give 10,000 of these meals for a donation of just £2,500.”

The Christian humanitarian organisation is regularly helping more than 485,000 children with meals, working with partners in 25 countries around the world to fight hunger due to poverty, war, famine and natural disasters. This is delivered home and abroad mainly through feeding programs and encouraging sustainability and Community Farming projects as well as holding packing events at the Halo Centre warehouse in Binley.

As part of the Boxes of Hope Campaign, for any company that can raise the money for the 10,000 meals, Feed The Hungry will come and run a food packing activity in which staff can pack the rice meals themselves. Packing 10,000 meals takes a team of 40 people around 2.5 hours.

Head of Fundraising for Feed The Hungry, Rich Smith, said: “We’re looking for companies of all sizes to take part. The donation for 10,000 meals doesn’t need to come from the business itself, but instead, we’d encourage staff to take part in fundraising as a team to raise the money. We’ve got online donation forms that can be set up for each company taking part so that you can see how much you’ve raised in real-time. And we’ve got loads of ideas to help you raise the money in enjoyable ways as a team.”

“Feed The Hungry run food packing events up and down the UK. We can come to your business and bring all of the equipment, ingredients and expertise so that your staff can help pack the meals that they’ve raised the money for. Meal packing is an amazing way for your staff to participate tangibly in helping to tackle world hunger, it’s a lot of fun and a great way to build your team.”

Organisations can contact the charity at: info@feedthehungry.org.uk or visit HERE to register interest and to get their own dedicated Boxes of Hope Donation Page for the company or team.

Find out more about Feed the Hungry’s work at home and abroad at: https://feedthehungry.org.uk/projects/

A Warwickshire distillery is celebrating a new partnership with two major local hospitality businesses.

Warwickshire Gin Company is producing white label gin for guests at Ashorne Hill learning and conference centre in Leamington as well as Delta Marriott Hotel in Warwick.

Owner Dave Blick said: “These white label projects give a unique element and deliver a very personal message to a business’s customers/guests.

“The RAF Royal Signals, Leamington Tennis Club, Leamington Polish Centre, Hansgrohe and Röhlig Logistics are also among a few of our completed projects. Customers can choose to add a variation of bottles or gift packaging with their own branding, we also offer a bespoke logistical solution to internal or external customers of the organisation.

“Bringing various projects to life for our customers is really great fun, promotes our distillery but also has great impact for the business/organisation which may be celebrating an anniversary, occasion or for brand awareness.”

Visitors to Ashorne Hill learning and conference centre, which offers over 40 meeting spaces set in 35 acres of grounds, are gifted 5cl miniature bottles of WGC’s Philosopher’s Daughter gin while Delta Marriott Hotel offers miniatures of the distillery’s signature Leamington On Parade gin.

Stuart Anderson, Executive Head Chef at Ashorne Hill, said: “The Warwickshire Gin Company helped bring The Taste of Ashorne Gin to life using botanicals from our estate. Dave and his team provided exceptional support throughout the development process, sharing their expertise to make the experience both enjoyable and seamless. We couldn’t have asked for a better partner.”

The four-star Delta Marriott Hotel also serves WGC’s award-winning Kingmaker Vodka behind its bar.

Jenny Heath, Director of Sales at Delta Hotels Marriott in Warwick, said: “Although our working relationship is quite new, the service I’ve received to date has been fantastic. We use the Warwickshire Gin Company for our corporate welcome gifts and also the Kingmaker Vodka and Gin in our aptly named Kingmaker Restaurant.”

The inspiration behind David’s drinks collection comes from a desire to capture a moment in history, developing flavours to fully represent the county’s own unique story and bringing the range of hand-crafted flavours to life.

As part of the continued chapter of growth for the ambitious entrepreneur, who established Warwickshire Gin Company in 2018, the new Lockhart’s mobile bar now also brings its range of drinks to private and public events. The huge 8x4m bar is designed to recreate the complete pub experience wherever it goes, including barrel tables and seating – a project that was supported by a council-backed duplex loan through Coventry and Warwickshire Reinvestment Trust.

The distillery also offers popular visitor experiences – Gin Tasting, Cocktails at The Distillery and their new Afternoon Gin & Tea plus a range of build-your-own branded gift bundles, including spirits, goblet, mixers and gin or rum-infused chocolates.

Further information on how to hire Lockhart’s is available from David Blick at: dave@warwickshiregincompany.co.uk