More than 530 members of the North of England’s property community attended this year’s Yorkshire Property Charity Lunch and helped to raise a phenomenal £53,620 for childhood cancer charity, Candlelighters and The Yorkshire Property Charitable Trust.
Prior to the lunch, which is now in its 21st year and was held at the First Direct Bank Arena for the second year running, the event’s annual football match was played at The John Charles Centre for Sport and a new netball match was played at The Edge, at the University of Leeds. Both matches saw property professionals taking on property agents, with the agents winning the football and the professionals triumphing in the netball.
After the lunch, which was compered by David Parkin, charity fundraising idol and Leeds Rhinos legend, Kevin Sinfield was given a hero’s welcome when he took to the stage as guest speaker.
Sinfield captivated the entire audience, regardless of whether or not they were rugby league fans, with stories spanning his childhood, his route into professional rugby, leadership and his career defining moments.
He also participated in a Q&A session with the audience and spoke about his great friend and former teammate, the late Rob Burrow, before discussing the highs and lows of his gruelling endurance challenges that have raised over £10m for motor neurone disease (MND) charities.
During the afternoon, four prizes were auctioned by James Pank from Auction House raising £6,750. These included a box with a meal and drinks for a choice of acts at the First Direct Bank Arena, a week for six people at Marriott’s Grand Chateau in Las Vegas, an eight-person sailing day and a break for four in Sedbergh. A raffle and not so silent auction both added to the fundraising total.
Matthew Wright from The Yorkshire Property Charitable Trust said: “This was undoubtedly one of the best property lunches in our 21-year history. The football match was as popular as ever and the netball was a great success that also attracted lots of spectators.
“Then, to welcome Kevin Sinfield as a guest speaker after the lunch was a huge privilege. He had an unbelievable sporting career; he’s a recognised leader and now he’s the ultimate fundraiser. When he spoke there was absolute silence, because everyone was fascinated by what he had to say. His stories went from laughing at dressing room pranks to the emotion of hearing him talk about Rob Burrow.
“There’s no doubt he inspired our audience to give so generously and yet again we’re blown away by the amount of money we raised and the kind-heartedness of the local property community. This money will make a genuine difference to both Yorkshire children battling cancer, as well as their families, and a whole host of other local causes and charities.
“Anyone working in the property industry can apply for funding from The Yorkshire Property Charitable Trust and we’re looking forward to supporting lots of worthy causes over the coming months.”
Each year, over 150 children in Yorkshire are diagnosed with cancer, and Candlelighters offers support to both the children and their families throughout the entire journey, by providing emotional, practical and financial support, as well as bringing hope, by investing in vital research to improve the outcomes and lives of children with cancer.
The Yorkshire Property Charitable Trust was established in 2015 by members of the property sector in Leeds. Today the trust supports all kinds of charities across Yorkshire and encourages members of the property community to nominate charities, as well as supporting specific projects or the purchase of equipment. It has also match funded members of the property community in their fundraising efforts.
Sponsors of this year’s Yorkshire Property Charity Lunch included Towngate, Chameleon Business Interiors, Blacks, Walker Morris, Wainwrights, Xenon, Glenbrook, Citipark, Firecrest Construction, First Direct Bank Arena and Sterling Event Group.
