Wellesley Park Primary School went into the red – willingly – on Friday to support the nation-wide fundraising day, ‘Ramp up the Red’, for the British Heart Foundation. Pupils and staff dressed in red, some even painted themselves red and parents organised a hugely successful Cake Sale after school. Half the proceeds of the day go to the BHF, the biggest funder of charitable heart research in the UK.
The school joined groups and individuals around the country in a wide range of fun ‘Ramp up the Red’ events, all of them aimed at raising both
money and awareness of coronary heart disease, “the UK’s biggest killer”. The British Heart Foundation is “fighting for everybody who suffers with a heart condition – from babies born with life-threatening heart problems, to the many mums, dads and grandparents who survive a heart attack and endure the daily struggles of heart failure.” Money raised from the Ramp up the Red day will go towards treatment and research into prevention of the disease, helping the BHF to “fight for every heartbeat.”
National fund-raising continues on 15 June with a London to Brighton Bike Ride.
Wellesley Park staff and pupils are also supporting the local ‘Archie Project’, a Somerset-based initiative run by Reminiscence Learning designed to lead to greater awareness of dementia. Many people with dementia use mascots or dolls as a source of comfort and attachment and Reminiscence Learning has a brightly knitted scarecrow called Archie as its mascot.
Archie has now come to life in ‘Archie’s Story’ which has been created to dispel the stigma associated with dementia. It illustrates the main signs and symptoms of Alzheimer’s (the most common type of dementia), the things that can be said and done to prevent a person with dementia from feeling ignored, invisible and unloved and ways sufferers can feel they a meaningful part of their community.
Report & Photos: Gill Paltridge