Fundraising Friday raises money for dogs for the disabled

Cannock-based Briggs Equipment held a fundraising day on Friday, 20 May to raise money for Dogs for the Disabled. The event was attended by local dignitaries.

Staff from the charity attended the event bringing along two of their assistant dogs to encourage donations. Briggs raised over £500, which will support the training of assistance dogs.

The event was a culmination of a whole week of activities including drawing and colouring, favourite dog ‘pin-ups’ and a competition to name one of the charity’s new trainee pups.

The highlight of the day was the presentation of award winners by Cannock Chase’s MP, Aidan Burley and Mark Francois, Vice Chamberlain of Her Majesty’s Household, Minister of the Privy Council as well as the naming of the new trainee pup, ‘Denver’.

In addition, two of the company’s directors became ‘Dogsbodies’ for the morning and swapped their daily activities to help out in different departments including reception, marketing and the post room.

Chris Meinecke, Chief Operating Officer of Briggs Equipment, commented: "Dogs for the Disabled transforms the lives of so many disabled people and fits in line with our core values of ethics, integrity and respect for the individual. We set a target for our first day to raise at least £500 and we have already beaten that with money collected so far. Our goal is to raise thousands of pounds for the Dogs for the Disabled in 2011 and our parent company, Sammons Enterprises inc., has pledged to match all the money we raise."

Other activities held on Friday were a ‘mufti’ day for staff to wear anything orange, a Bring & Buy Sale and a Big Dog Quiz.

The Dogs for the Disabled charity trains assistance dogs for children and adults with physical disabilities and families who have children with autism.