Take PRIDE in Raising almost £1500 On Friday, the 28th June, employees across a number of our sites dressed up and supported #PRIDE2019 in aid of the Albert Kennedy Trust - a charity that provides safe homes and better futures for LGBTQ+ young people. The Trust is named after Albert Kennedy (31.01.1973 – 30.04.1989), a 16-year-old Social Services care leaver from Manchester. He died after falling from a car park roof in Manchester city centre, when chased in a homophobic attack. The Trust believe that no young person should have to choose between a safe home and being who they are and with an estimated 150,000 young LGBTQ+ people homeless or at risk of homelessness as a result of intolerance, their work is invaluable. Exertis employees raised £704.85, matched by Exertis for a total contribution of £1,409.70.

On Track for Severn Hospice Exertis is on track to raise an ambitious target of £25,000 for the Severn Hospice in memory of former employee Shane O’Connor who worked as a business development manager in our mobile division for 6 years. Two events have already taken place. Nine members of the Exertis mobile team competed in the Marlow Fugitive Olympic Relay Marathon in July. The challenge comprised of a brisk 1.5km swim in the Thames, followed by a 37km bike ride and a 10km run. Two more Exertis employees and a colleague from Sony also completed a 100km bike ride that comprised of off-road cycling and some serious gradient-filled countryside in a challenge that lasted over 5 and a half hours.The Severn Hospice is the chosen charity of Shane’s family. It gives specialist care and support free of charge to families across Shropshire and Mid Wales who are living with an incurable illness.

Marathon Man Gareth, Raises Almost £2000 for Local Charity. Gareth Phillips, head of commercial at Exertis in Harlow ran the London marathon in April, raising almost £2000 for Accuro Care Services, a charity that provides a range of services for children and young adults with disabilities in West Essex. Gareth finished in 6h 18m 30 secs, a little over his target time but in rather warm conditions. However, he beat his fundraising target by almost 100%. “Thankfully, I manged to cross the line ahead of the man dressed as a tractor and the Teletubbies but couldn’t keep up with Sargent Peppers’s Lonely Hearts Club band who were running with amplifiers on their backs and carrying guitars and singing Beatles hits. It was an amazing event and the crowd were brilliant, but I have no burning desire to ever do it again.”. Well done Gareth.