Warriors and West Mercia Police joined forces in a successful evening of fund-raising for seriously ill Worcester schoolboy Oscar Saxelby-Lee.
A crowd of around 2,100 watched West Mercia Police defeat Warwickshire Police under the Sixways floodlights in a charity rugby match and helped to raise a significant sum of money which will help to send five-year-old Oscar to Singapore for specialist treatment for his rare form of leukaemia which is not available on the National Health Service.
The money is still being counted but with gate receipts, bar profits swelled by the generosity of Greene King who supplied a range of drinks free of charge, collections, a raffle, a silent auction and a range of other fun-raising activities, a hefty five figure sum is likely.
Fund-raising for Oscar has already topped with £500,000 with donations from across the world as well as closer to home.
Oscar’s schoolmates and staff at Pitmaston Primary School have been driving forces in the fund-raising and they were applauded by spectators and players on a lap of honour which also included Warriors co-owners Jason Whittingham and Colin Goldring, and Managing Director Peter Kelly.
“What an amazing evening for a fantastic cause,” Kelly said. “Oscar’s story has touched the hearts of people from across the globe but in our local community in particular.
“When West Mercia Police approached us about the possibility of staging a match for Oscar we were only too happy to help out.
“It was an evening that showed the community at its very best with different organisations united in a common cause. Warriors were proud to be part of such a special occasion.
“Thank you to everyone who attended and donated to the Help for Oscar initiative. We hope that by the end of this week we will have a pretty good idea of how much we have raised but the early indications are that it will be a pretty hefty sum.
“I’d also like to thank all the players who took part in the three matches on the evening and all Warriors and West Mercia Police staff who worked so hard to put the event on a just two weeks’ notice. All gave up their time for free to ensure that we could raise as much money as possible to support Oscar.”
It is not too late to make a donation to support Oscar. Further information can be found here
Warriors are also running a silent auction, which includes prizes such as signed shirts, holiday stays and jewellery. The silent auction ends at 4pm on Friday October 11 and you can take part in the silent auction here
Thank you to all businesses who donated staff, services and entertainment: Greene King, Westons, BBC Inflatables, Toyah Murtaza, LMS, JTC 7, Owen Lowe, ADI TV, Andrew Easton (BBC Hereford & Worcester), St John Ambulance, First Group, Dr Cowen, Immediate Care Medical, Severn Security Services, Worcester RFC U15s, Baxter Williams, Scimitar Sports, Crowngate, Sam Holdaway, Jason (Bikeathon), Universal Displays and Source Design & Print.