AFC Bournemouth
With their time as AFC Bournemouth charity partners drawing to a close, the four charities for 2017/18 give highlights of working with the Cherries.
Each charity received a cheque for £3,835 to mark the end of their partnership with the club at Vitality Stadium.
Spokespeople from each of the four local charities then spoke about their experience as official charity partners.
The partnership between AFC Bournemouth and The Dorset Children’s Foundation has been a delight and has really helped to raise The Dorset Children’s Foundation’s profile within the local community.
The highlight was when our children were selected to be flag bearers at the Everton match. Our parents never thought that their children would ever have the opportunity to be on pitch with a Premier League club. This was where dreams were fulfilled and memories made.
Our signed AFC Bournemouth shirt was stolen from our charity shop so we were astonished and delighted when a replacement was brought in to our Boscombe shop by Steve Cook and Steve Fletcher.
We were given the opportunity to have our mascot Dorsey Bear at all the home games which allowed us to not only bond with fans but to generate awareness about our charity.
We would like to thank all at AFC Bournemouth who supported us this year and wish the future charity partners the best of luck.
Patsy Hallmey, trustee, Dorset Children’s Foundation
The support and inclusion that was given to the Fortune Centre of Riding Therapy (FCRT) students, especially at live matches, is something they have never experienced before and has now given them the confidence to join the U18s at home fixtures. At FCRT we now feel we have built a lasting connection with AFC Bournemouth and Cherry Bear is always welcome to join us again for a vaulting session on an FCRT horse!
Paola King, personal assistant to the director
AFC Bournemouth’s support has been invaluable to Dorset Cancer Care Foundation (DCCF) during the past two seasons and we cannot thank the club and its supporters enough, for both their fundraising and the awareness they have raised on our behalf. Many people with cancer living across Dorset have been helped through financial difficulties as a direct result of the club’s patronage.
Chris Thomas, chairman of DCCF
We were thrilled to have been voted AFC Bournemouth supporters’ charity of the season for 2017/18 and it has given us immense pride to be involved with AFC Bournemouth over the season.
The funding from the AFCB Community Fund for laptops has brought long-term benefits in the education of volunteers, and funding to enable us to have a stall at Flowerfest 18 which has helped increase our presence within our community.
Our association with AFC Bournemouth can’t just be defined by monetary value alone but has bought about new friendships and contacts by attending business breakfasts and working together with the Junior Cherries charity, Dorset Children’s Foundation. It has seen the inclusion of our volunteers in the community therefore reducing stigma and the experiences that the volunteers have had will last in their memory for a long time. .
Thank you to AFC Bournemouth and the supporters that voted for us.
Ray Alderton, Events Coordinator, Cherry Tree Nursery
The club's charity partners for the upcoming 2018/19 season will be announced ahead of the new campaign.
