The dust might have settled in the forests of Dumfries and Galloway, but the RSAC Scottish Rally isn’t finished for 2008 quite yet. Rally organisers and supporters have been making a big push this year to collect money for charities in the buildup to the event, with a public forum the week before the rally and an auction at the event prizegiving. It all came good this week when a delegation from the rally made a trip to Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary’s Children's Ward (Ward 15) to present ward staff with a cheque for one thousand and fifty pounds.
The Children's Ward was nominated for the donation by Tom Telfer, a long-time friend of the event who secures space on the Heathhall industrial estate for the rally crews to service their cars on. Tom recently joined Alan Dalziel, a member of the Scottish Rally organising committee, and Simon Haugh of rally supporters James Haugh Subaru to drop in on the on-duty nurses and present them with the giant cheque, along with a Subaru Teddy for each child to cuddle up with that night.
The donation came largely from funds raised at a charity forum held on Friday, 20 June in Dumfries’ James Haugh Subaru garage. Members of the public paid to hear some of the country’s top rally stars field questions about life on and off the stages, and a number of leading rally teams provided goodies to be raffled off. Rally officials then pledged to match the amount the forum had raised, to be split between the Children's Ward and charities established in honour of the late Colin McRae. And if that wasn’t enough, Subaru put up a jacket signed by the Subaru Rally Team’s world-famous drivers, which was then auctioned off at the post-rally prizegiving to boost the donation.
“Tom has been a valuable asset to us over recent years and we have been only too happy to help out one of his nominated charities in return, and plan to continue doing so in the future” commented rally Press Officer Leslie Mabon. “We are also gratefully indebted to James Haugh Subaru for providing us with the venue for the rally forum and for laying on some terrific raffle prizes, and to all of the rally competitors, teams and supporters who contributed so generously to our forum evening.”
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