Yellow Umbrella Day goes down a storm

Huge turnout at charity event

Over 1,500 people turned up at Chiswick Park on Sunday 18th September to support the third annual Yellow Umbrella Day. Around 400 people participated in two sponsored walks, the 5km ‘mini-umbrella’ and the 10km ‘grand-umbrella’ and the 10km run or ‘runbrella’ that started from Chiswick Park and followed routes along the river Thames.

First place in the men’s 10km run went to Scott Mitchell, with Jamal Mohamad second and Ashraf Khan third. The women’s event was won by Suzanne Hilton, second place went to Fiona Hopwood and third to Angela Austin. The winners were all either locals, from companies located on the park, or from Runners World.

The number of people taking part in the events has more than doubled since last year. The team are hopeful they will improve on last years fundraising efforts with all the money raised going to children’s charities; The Shooting Star Children’s Hospice, Whiz-Kidz and Mukti, making a real difference to children locally, nationally and internationally.

The event was open to all and was designed to be inclusive for the whole community with course options to suit a wide range of ages and abilities. Fundraisers and guests were welcomed back to Chiswick Park after the sporting events, to enjoy a huge party which was free to all. The entertainment throughout the afternoon included a live performance from ABBA tribute band, Bjorn Again, a beat the goalie competition, gladiator jousting, a treasure hunt and a BBQ.

The event was given huge support from local businesses on the day. This year the main sponsors were Chiswick Park developers Stanhope, Schroders and Singapore Airlines. A number of prizes were generously donated for the event, including; two return flights to Singapore from Singapore Airlines; a family holiday to Disney Land and £200 worth of holiday vouchers.

Sarah Green the Yellow Umbrella Day event organiser at Chiswick Park said: “This years Yellow Umbrella Day was a fantastic success in every way. The turnout was very impressive, especially for the performance of ABBA tribute band, Bjorn Again which was a real highlight. As well as being a fun-filled day for all the family, we have raised a great deal of money for our three charities which will make a huge difference to hundreds of children’s lives.”

September 20, 2005