by Paula Bennett | Nov 29, 2023 | News
This year, Felixstowe Port Users’ Association (FPUA) is raising funds for the Diabetes Centre at Ipswich Hospital.
All proceeds from the FPUA’s Christmas Charity Ball held on 1st December 2023, will be donated to the Centre, which looks after both children and adults with diabetes.
Established in the UK in 1985, it is now world-renowned for research and development and provides patient-centred care and education courses for people with diabetes. The Diabetes Centre continues to rely on Charity Funds to provide “that something extra” for patients with diabetes that makes a real difference.
Incredibly grateful for any contributions to its charity fund, Chair of Felixstowe Port Users’ Association Jason Flower said: “Diabetes is a relentless condition, and the fear of serious complications is a lifelong reality for millions of people across the UK and we are proud to be supporting such a worthy cause. Once again, the FPUA community has come together, making Friday night’s Christmas Charity Ball a sell-out.”
How you can help:
- Give generously throughout the evening. Raffle tickets are £10 each, cash only, please.
- Donate money for patient-centred care and education courses for people with diabetes; all donations are gratefully received.
- Account details for donations:
Felixstowe Port Users Association Ltd | Sort code 20-98-07 | Account No 30958344.
All monies raised will go to the Diabetes Centre, Fund Details ESNEFT Charity Fund 82068.
by Paula Bennett | Jun 9, 2023 | News
With a reputation for being one of the best events in Felixstowe’s charity calendar, the FPUA charity golf day (hosted on 26th May) was a corker for those attending and the five worthy causes that will benefit from its fundraising efforts.
Jason Flower, chair of the FPUA, comments: “Surpassing all our hopes, our fourth annual golf day saw 19 fourball teams head out on the fairway and raised £10,500 for charity; our best total yet.”
With the sun shining and everyone embracing the spirit of the event, such a day takes a lot of organising. As Jason says: “A massive thank you must go to the Felixstowe Ferry Golf Club (and in particular Ben, Donna and Catherine) for hosting once again and doing us proud, as always.”
“Where would we be without Mark Binge? Responsible for almost every aspect of the day’s organisation, profound thanks go to Mark and the FPUA Committee for their support.
“And then there are our sponsors. Thank you to our generous main sponsors – Goldstar Transport, Chassis Cab, Vartan Consultancy, MSC, GMA, Grange Shipping, MultiFreight, LPS, LME Recruitment, Metro Shipping and Bruha Brewing. And the fourteen companies that sponsored individual holes and whose banners you would have seen. A big thank you to you all.”
A golf day report isn’t complete without details of the winners. Congratulations go to:
Winning Team: MSC (D Woolnough, D Dadswell, N Barker and A Pilcher) – with 125 points
Second Place Team: Hemisphere Freight (C Perrin, A Perrin, L Perrin and G Palmer) – with 122 points
Third Place Team: 3PL (K Lawrenson, A Marshall, S Underwood, K Stewart) – with 116 points
Best Individual Player: Craig Perrin, Hemisphere Freight – with 46 points
Always keen to keep recipients of funds raised close to home and within the Felixstowe area, this year, funds raised are being split between the following good causes:
- Ethan Ridd – 17-year-old Ethan is raising funds to support his battle against cancer
- Rocco Mickelsen – aged seven, suffers from Lennox Gastaut syndrome, a severe form of epilepsy. He is raising funds for medicine not supported by the NHS
- League of Friends of Felixstowe Hospital
- Kingsfleet Primary School
- Felixstowe School
And with a final word from Jason Flower: “Regardless of whether it is one of our fundraising events or one organised by another part of our local logistics community, the generosity and commitment to supporting others never fails to amaze me.
“And whilst never taking anything for granted, now seems a good time to share the date of our 2023 Christmas Ball. Hosted on 1st December at the Orwell Hotel, the event will raise funds for the Ipswich Diabetic Clinic, and any prizes you can donate for the raffle will, as always, be hugely appreciated.”
by Paula Bennett | Apr 3, 2023 | News
With plans for the Felixstowe Port User Association’s fourth annual charity golf day well underway, this year’s must-attend event will be hosted on Friday, 26th May 2023, at the award-winning Felixstowe Ferry Golf Club.
Chair of FPUA, Jason Flower, says: “Last year’s golf day efforts resulted in a fantastic £8,850 being raised for local causes. And with everyone involved determined to go bigger and better this year, we’re hoping to raise £10,000 to support those who need it most.
“With the day’s reputation for being one of the industry’s highlights of the year, only a limited number of team places are available. So, if you’re keen to be involved, please get in touch as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
“Grateful as ever to our sponsors who make the whole day possible, this year we’d like to extend our thanks to Goldstar Transport, GMA, Grange Shipping, MSC, Multifreight, VARTAN and Great-Blakenham-based Chassis Cab.”
“And as a first, the Bruha Brewing Company will provide course refreshments in the form of their regionally brewed Lager, Session Pale and IPA, as well as Pimm’s and soft drinks. We’d also like to express our gratitude to them.”
Hoping for a sunny day and a great round of golf in prospect, prizes will also be awarded to the teams placed first, second and third, and to the golfer with the best individual round and two nearest the pin prizes.
Jason adds, “With the FPUA known for its love of a good raffle, there is plenty of time to provide a prize or make a donation. A host of sponsorship opportunities are also available, so if anyone is interested in finding out more, please drop me a line at info@fpua.co.uk.”
For full details about submitting a team, click here
by Paula Bennett | Jan 17, 2023 | News
The Felixstowe Port Users’ Association’s (FPUA) Charity Ball, hosted on 2nd December, not only delivered a great night out for its guests but raised the vital £5,000 needed to continue Sadie Ray’s place on a cancer phase 1 (never before tested on humans) clinical trial with the Sarah Cannon Institute Research (SCRI) team in Harley Street.
FPUA chairman, Jason Flower, says: “The generosity of our members this year has far exceeded our hopes. We’ve provided £5,000 for Sadie to continue this pioneering and hopefully life-saving trial, which is the best Christmas gift we could give.”
Sadie is now embarking on her new course of treatment and was keen to thank all FPUA members and the logistics community for their generosity, kindness and support.
With this year’s Charity Ball and Golf Day raising a hugely impressive £13,500, Jason Flower adds: “Despite the geopolitical and economic challenges that businesses keep coming up against, the logistics community has once again demonstrated that we are an industry with a big heart. And with Christmas looming, all our thoughts and prayers are with Sadie and her family.”
by Paula Bennett | Dec 1, 2022 | News
This year, Felixstowe Port Users’ Association (FPUA) is raising life-critical funds to support Sadie Ray – an inspirational and resilient Felixstowe woman – wife to Steven and mum to daughters Olivia, aged six and Isabella, who is just three – in her battle against cancer.
With previous medical interventions failing to date, Sadie is now on her next life-saving venture – a clinical trial with Sarah Cannon Research Institute.
A world-leading clinical trials facility specialising in developing new therapies and precision medication for cancer patients, Sarah Cannon Research UK, is the first unit outside the NHS to offer new anti-cancer drugs in clinical trials.
As a member of our local logistics industry, can you help fund Sadie’s life-extending clinical trial?
Sadie’s Story
In July 2020, Sadie was initially diagnosed with cancer of unknown primary and given a few months to live. Shaken to the core by this prognosis and seeking a second opinion, new hope was restored, and Sadie embarked on twelve rounds of chemotherapy. A second biopsy confirmed that she had a germ cell tumour – curable cancer – and she was referred to a specialist in London.
Sadie started a new regime that included a further six rounds of chemotherapy, followed by two stem cell transplants. She had to stay in a London hospital for a month at a time – in isolation without seeing her children, husband, or any other family or friends. The hope was to have surgery to remove the tumour. However, a further scan showed a spread of cancer to the liver, and the surgery was cancelled.
Her oncologist recommended a tumour sample be sent to Caris in America for a DNA sequencing test, as understanding her cancer at a molecular level might give a more targeted therapy, which would have to be self-funded by Sadie and her family.
In the meantime, she was given further chemotherapy to help manage the spread of cancer. But with her body struggling to recover, this treatment was halted.
The results from Caris returned, recommending immunotherapy called pembrolizumab, again giving renewed hope. This treatment wasn’t available to Sadie on the NHS, but thankfully a charity stepped in and sponsored Sadie’s medication.
Feeling good, Sadie had hoped this would be the final key to unlocking success. Unfortunately, further scans showed liver progression, and she was taken off the medication. And whilst the charity had to cease funding Sadie, she continued extensive fundraising for them with the help of friends, family, local charities, and organisations.
With options running out, AstraZeneca came forward to sponsor a medication called ‘Olaparbib’, again giving hope to Sadie and her family. But sadly, this was deemed not to be helping after just two rounds.
Bringing us up to the present day and with the team at Charing Cross Hospital running out of options, only two possibilities remain. Look for a new clinical trial or accept the end-of-life status.
More determined than ever, Sadie has begun a phase 1 (never before tested on humans) clinical trial with The Sarah Canon Institute Research team in Harley Street, embarking on another medical journey.
How You Can Help
- Provide raffle prizes for the FPUA Christmas Charity Ball, The Orwell Hotel, 2nd December 2022. Contact info@fpua.co.uk to arrange the collection of your gift.
- Give generously throughout the evening. Raffle tickets are £10 each, cash only, please.
- Donate money for Sadie’s clinical trial; all donations are gratefully received. Account details for donations: Felixstowe Port Users Association Ltd | Sort code 20-98-07 | Account No 30958344. All monies raised will go to the Sarah Cannon Research Institute so they can continue their research and fund treatment.
by Paula Bennett | Jun 11, 2022 | News
With the sun shining and Felixstowe Ferry Golf Club doing Felixstowe Port Users’ Association and its guests proud, the FPUA charity golf day was a day to remember.
With 84 golfers across twenty-one teams playing on the day, a fantastic £8,850 was raised by the event, all of which will support local causes.
Jason Flower, chairman of the FPUA, says: “Firstly, a big thank you to everyone who participated in the day and donated so generously, notably our main sponsors 3PL, Gotelee Solicitors, GMA Warehousing & Transport, Vartan Consultancy, LPS and Pentalver.
“Congratulations, go, of course, to the day’s winners. Maritime Transport scooped the number one slot for the second year running in the team event, with Elite Universal and Magnus Group teams coming second and third, respectively.
“Congratulations also go to Maritime Transport’s George Copsey, whose skill on the course ensured his place as the day’s individual winner and Matt King and Stewart Newson, who both won nearest the pin.”
Beneficiaries of funds raised this year include:
Jason Flower adds: “We hoped to improve upon the £7,500 raised last year, and I’m delighted to say we achieved our goal. The last three golf days the FPUA has hosted have raised a hugely impressive £20,000 for good causes across our community.
This figure speaks volumes about the generosity and commitment of all those involved locally in the sector to look after our own. A massive thank you to everyone involved.”
