Local resident Tony Giles spends his Sunday afternoons at the Beaufort Arms, located on North Road, Stoke Gifford, raising money for local charities. Since January 2018 he has raised an impressive £2,000, which he has chosen to donate to the Above & Beyond charity which raises funds for hospitals in Bristol.
Tony has been raising money at the Beaufort Arms for nearly 30 years with his weekly meat raffle and games of ‘higher or lower’. He estimates that over the years he has probably raised about £50,000, which has all gone to local charities.
Above & Beyond is a Bristol-based charity which aims to raise funds to ensure patient care is the very best it can be in Bristol city centre hospitals. With the money that they receive from donors and supporters they fundraise to:
- Create welcoming environments
- Provide world class facilities and the latest technology
- Fund innovative research
- Support staff training and development
As the charity supports a wide variety of departments across the Bristol hospitals, Tony usually specifies which area he would like to donate the money raised to. This time, he wanted the £2,000 raised to go to the Children’s Hospital; more specifically, the cancer and cardiac wards.
Having a heart condition himself; Tony has spent a lot of time in hospital and knows what a scary place it can be, especially for children. This is one of the reasons why he chose Above & Beyond to donate the money to. He says:
“I really enjoy raising the money. As my heart function is so low, I don’t get about so much, so this gives me something to do. I want to give something back so I make sure that I always choose local charities and departments that don’t get much financial support.”
The presentation of the cheque was made on Sunday 25th November at the Beaufort Arms. Lydia McGivern, who works for Above & Beyond, received the cheque from Tony and general manager Jim Carey. Lydia said:
“We are so grateful for what Tony has done and for everyone’s support at the Beaufort Arms. Their incredible donation will make a real difference to our young cardiac and cancer patients at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children.”
Tony has already started raising money for his latest project. Again, the money will be going to the Above & Beyond charity, but this time it will be for the Meadow ward at the Children’s Hospital. This is a surgical ward where children stay before and after their surgeries, usually only staying for one day. Even though the children are only there for a short time, having surgery can be very scary and Tony wants to raise money which can be used to purchase new play equipment for the children to enjoy while they wait to go into theatre. To help raise the money for the Meadow ward, Tony held a Christmas raffle at the Beaufort Arms. The draw took place on Sunday 23rd December and has gone a long way towards his £1,000 target.
Describing Tony and the work that he has been doing, Jim Carey, general manager of the Beaufort, said:
“Tony is an amazing guy with a massive heart of gold and he will do anything for anyone, it’s been a privilege to meet him and help with all the work that he does for the charities.”
Photo: Charity cheque presentation at the Beaufort Arms. L-r: Glyn Lloyd (with his Jack Russel Fidget), general manager Jim Carey, Tony Giles, Lorna and Above & Beyond representative Lydia McGivern.
This article originally appeared in the January 2019 issue of the Stoke Gifford Journal news magazine (on page 7). The magazine is delivered FREE, EVERY MONTH, to over 5,000 homes in Stoke Gifford, Little Stoke and Harry Stoke. Phone 01454 300 400 to enquire about advertising or leaflet insertion.
