Bowl 2000 ready to strike out for appeal

MORAY Friends of ARCHIE are hoping people will show real staying power next month for the Dr Gray’s Children’s Ward Appeal.

Bowl 2000 in Elgin is hosting a sponsored 10-hour bowlathon in support of the £100,000 plus appeal.

Starting at 11am on Sunday, March 18, they are looking for teams of up to six people to stay on their pins and knock them down until 9pm that evening.

The bowling and fun centre is donating free lanes for the duration of the marathon for the challenge.

Places will be allocated on a first come first served basis for the sponsored event.

Not all six teams members will have to bowl continuously for 10 hours and it is up to each individual team how they share out the time.

Teams are being asked to raise sponsorship for Elgin’s Dr Gray’s hospital appeal. There will be prizes on the day for the team getting the most strikes and scoring the most points.

Appeal chairman Chris Saunderson said: "We are delighted Bowl 2000 are backing our campaign. It should be great fun which will keep teams going for the 10 hours."

Darren Margach, of Bowl 2000, said: "It is a great cause and we always like to support local charities."

Meanwhile, local poet Norma D. Beaton is donating a series of illustrated poems in support of the appeal.

Ms Beaton, from New Elgin, has written poetry for many years as a passion and a hobby.

Her grandson, William Beaton, spent 10 days in Dr Gray’s children’s ward last year with a chest infection, and the care he received has prompted her to support the appeal.

"The staff there do so much good," she said, "I wanted to say thank you."

Her illustrayed poems, all in their own frames, cover a range of subjects and she draws inspiration from all aspects of life.

Moray Friends of ARCHIE hope to display all her poems in the near future locally and check out the appeal’s Facebook page n the next couple of weeks for details of where you can view them.

A recent teddy bear tombola at Elgin Farmers’ Market run by the Moray Friends group proved a great success, despite wind and rain.

The stall raised £200 on the day and even survived a huge gust of wind which spilled teddies, money and tickets on the Plainstones at one point in the afternoon.

So many teddies were donated by individuals and local companies, that it is planned to run a similar event in the near future.

Many thanks to all those who donated teddies and other cuddly toys for the event.

Sponsor forms are available from Bowl 2000 and Chris Saunderson at 'The Northern Scot'.