STAFF FUNDRAISING EFFORT SMASHES THE £200,000 MARK
A fundraising initiative set up to celebrate the 150th anniversary of a local firm has reached a major milestone – with a staggering £200,000 donated to community organisations and charities in Norfolk and Suffolk.
Leading regional accountants, business advisers and financial planners Lovewell Blake launched their LB150 initiative in 2008 as part of the firm’s 150th anniversary celebrations, with the aim of raising £150,000 in five years.
With that target achieved in 2012, partners and staff at Lovewell Blake decided to continue their fundraising efforts, and on Wednesday evening business leaders, charity representatives and staff got together to celebrate the achievement of the latest milestone.
Now the firm has announced it is aiming to take the fund to £250,000, and extend grant-giving to community organisations and charities in Cambridgeshire, following its expansion into the county earlier this year.
Philanthropy guru Graham Tuttle, chief executive of the Norfolk Community Foundation, which alongside the foundations in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire administers the fund on behalf of Lovewell Blake, paid tribute to the efforts of partners and staff in raising such a huge sum – and called on other businesses to follow Lovewell Blake’s example.
“Many organisations undertake fundraising activities, but few do it in such a structured and focussed way as Lovewell Blake has done with its LB150 initiative,” said Mr Tuttle.
“Their tremendous efforts have made a huge difference to communities across Norfolk and Suffolk, and now into Cambridgeshire, and the focussed manner of their grant-giving has enabled the funds raised to make an even bigger impact.
“It has been a delight to work with Lovewell Blake across the past eight years, and we look forward to continuing this relationship into the future. What the firm has achieved, and the positive impact it has had on communities across the region, will, I hope, be an inspiration for other employers.
“I would urge businesses across East Anglia to follow Lovewell Blake’s splendid example, and make our region a better place.”
Recognising the efforts of partners and staff in achieving the £200,000 milestone, Lovewell Blake senior partner Paul Briddon added, “We are immensely proud of what we have achieved through our LB 150 initiative.
“When we embarked on it, we knew that the original target of £150,000 was a big ask. So to reach the next significant milestone is testament to the way that everybody in the firm has embraced the concept, and thrown themselves into the fundraising.
“We look forward to driving the fund even further, and supporting even more local charities and community groups across Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire in the coming years.”
Community groups interested in applying for a grant from the LB 150 fund can do so by contacting the Norfolk, Suffolk or Cambridgeshire Community Foundations.