The Hadley Cycles Ride for Sick Kids riders and organisers would like to thank the Armidale community for their incredible support as they celebrated the end of their epic 535km ride, which has so far raised an astonishing $300,000 for Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) programs across Northern NSW.
The Charity Bike Ride, which took place from Tuesday, August 31 to Saturday, September 3, involved a team of 25 dedicated cyclists, travelling from Armidale to Newcastle, raising much-needed funds for seriously ill children supported by Ronald McDonald Houses in Newcastle and Tamworth, the Forster Family Retreat and the planned Family Room at the Gosford Hospital.
Troy Johnson, McDonald’s Armidale Licensee and organiser of the Armidale fundraising event held on Monday August 30 at NERAM, is proud of the generosity of the local community who showed great support for the fundraising event which raised over $53,000.
“We would like to thank the Armidale community for rallying around this worthy cause. The Armidale fundraising event would not have been the success that it was without the tremendous compassion and generosity of some key local residents who have supported this initiative from the beginning,” said Troy.
“In particular, we would like to thank our major sponsor Steve Sewell from Invest Blue; Richard Torbay MP for the Parliament House luncheon; personal trainer Jim Ridley and the local residents who took part in his 12-week challenge; members of the East Cricket and Hillgrove Cricket Clubs; riders from the Inverell Cycle Club; Graham Porter and Coca-Cola Armidale; the talented comedian Kenny Graham for entertaining everyone that evening; our wonderful Emcee, Andrew Kirk,; Rowan Tihema from NERAM Harvest and the staff at NERAM; and finally the event’s amazing auctioneer Victor Moar.”
“We would also like to give a special thank you to Ben Foster and Shane Northam, for sharing with us their experience of staying at the Houses with their families which made the night all the more meaningful for all who attended. The $53,000 raised at the Armidale fundraising event ensured that this year’s Ride was well on its way of reaching its fundraising target, so residents should be proud of their fantastic contribution,” Troy said.
