Lord Mayor can put feet up at last

8:22pm Wednesday 21st May 2008

Comments (0)   Have your say »

Two Bradford charities will share £110,000 after enjoying the patronage of the outgoing Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Bradford.

Councillor Robin Owens and his wife Janet raised money for The Ear Trust and The Daisy Appeal, during their year in office.

Now the mayoral year has drawn to a close and it has been announced the Lord Mayor's Appeal raised the six figure sum.

The Ear Trust was founded in 1990 to support the Yorkshire Cochlear Implant Service at Bradford Royal Infirmary. Consultant ENT surgeon Chris Raine introduced the service and it has grown over the years and now needs a bigger home.

The charity is running the Listening For Life Appeal to raise money to build a dedicated centre for the cochlear implant service at BRI.

Mr Raine said: "Councillor Owens adopting us as one of his charities has been invaluable in terms of raising awareness of deafness and and the need for the Listening For Life Centre.

"The funding we will receive will make a great impact on the building and equipment required - however, we have a long way to go to reach our target of £1.1m.

"A very big thank you to Robin and Janet for all their hard work in the last year, it is much appreciated by the trustees of the Ear Trust, the staff at the Yorkshire Cochlear Implant Service and all patients and their families."

The Daisy Appeal fundraisers had already raised £782,500 towards their £1.4m target for a new cancer support centre in Smith Lane, Bradford, to house the services of Bradford Cancer Support when it was chosen by Coun Owens as one of his charities.

Now, two years after the appeal was started, it has just £60,000 to go and the final Daisy Appeal event will be a ball at Salts Mill in Saltaire on June 21.

Maureen Burns, Daisy Appeal fundraiser said: "It has been a fantastic year working with the Lord and Lady Mayoress and the opportunity to raise the profile of the charity has been immense. It has been a huge privilege to be part of the Lord Mayor's Appeal.

"Their support for people with cancer leaves a lasting legacy. They should be immensely proud of their achievements."

The 107th Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Howard Middleton, has chosen to support the Bradford branch of the Alzheimer's Society.