Hello and welcome to this weeks blog, lots to get through so let’s get going! Firstly, I want to say a huge thank you to the parents/carers of the pupils of the Priory school in Christchurch. On Friday, we were able to host our first ever “pop-up charity shop”. We were warmly welcomed by the Friends of Priory school (registered charity) to not only sell children’s items that were generously donated by Priory parents, but to spread our message of autism inclusion and celebration of neurological differences.
We need to say a massive thanks to David and Martyn from Reformed Plastics, for loaning us their enormous trailer that enabled us to move the hundreds of donated items, marquees, marketing tools, signs and tables. We could not have done this without your support, and so we are immensely grateful.
We managed to raise £220, and when you consider that most items were selling for £1 or 50p, we were really delighted with that number. Minus expenses, this means that Awesome Archie non-profit are proud to donate £81.80 to the FPS. All remaining unsold items are going straight down to the Dorset Children’s Foundation treehouse for them to support the many children under their care. Although Awesome Archie has been a little under the weather, he was with us in spirit, and was cheering us on from the sofa.
Dan and Gavin’s “healthy body, healthy mind” inclusive sporting event.
Saturday morning was a fantastic start to our weekend. You may or may not realise that Archie and I have been lucky enough to work with Dan Moody (Dorset School Games) for a little while now. I have mentioned before that the reason I admire Dan is that his passion for sport isn’t based on winning, he’s a true champion for the tryer. He and Gavin have worked tirelessly to create an inclusive sports day targeting those children who, for whatever reason may find standard sporting events overwhelming. We at Awesome Archie were asked to come along and host a tent in the mental health support section of this brilliant day, based at the Grange School in Christchurch. We were supported by MyTime Carers and Place2Be and we brought along a “chill out tent” for when kids felt overwhelmed. We spoke to lots of wonderful families and made some brilliant connections 🙂
The event was absolutely buzzing with excitement and there were opportunities for children to try… soft archery, dancing, tennis, netball, botcha, indoor curling, taekwondo and lots more).
It was phenomenal to be with so many charities, NHS support workers, and community interest companies that all have the same goal in mind… the health and happiness of children.
The event appeared to be a fantastic success, and we are all hoping that it will become a termly date in the diary and spread county-wide. Thank you for the privilege of allowing us to take part, and we can’t wait for the next one.
https://www.reformedplastics.co.uk
https://www.activedorset.org/school-games
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