[M]idwifery and nursing staff from Furness General Hospital are getting in tandem with members of the Rotary Club of Furness to encourage entries for this year’s Tour de Furness charity cycle ride, which takes place this coming Sunday (September 10th) and is raising money for Bay Hospital Charity’s Bayb’s Maternity Appeal among other causes.
Bayb’s appeal co-ordinator Heidi Bowron and a midwifery team that also includes Deputy Chief Nurse Lynne Wyre will be taking part in this year’s tour, which starts and finishes at Roose Conservative Club, Barrow, and offers cyclists a choice of routes that range from five miles in length to 50 miles.
And with the closing date for entries now extended until Thursday, September 7th, everyone connected with the ride is hoping for a record breaking year. Dave Salt, Committee Chair of the Tour de Furness, said: “This will be our 22nd annual ride. Our first ride had just 15 participants but last year, we had 570 riders, whose efforts enabled us to distribute around £42,000 to local good causes.
“All together, since that first tour in 1995, the event has raised £400,000 for local charities and been enjoyed by 7,000 cyclists.”
Barrow and Furness MP John Woodcock gave his full backing to the event. He said: “The tour has established itself as one of the highlights of the Furness calendar. It is a colourful and well-organised spectacle which is enjoyed by the hundreds of riders who take part and the many spectators who look forward to it each year.
“Apart from being an important piece of our sporting jigsaw, the money generated by the tour has been a massive boost for local worthy causes.
“This time around the Bayb’s Maternity Appeal will be one of the main beneficiaries. This charity has been set up to help pay for extras that are going to be needed when Furness General Hospital’s new maternity unit opens its doors. Along with many other members of our community, I have been involved in supporting maternity services at FGH and the money raised on the tour will help to make the unit a fantastic asset for families across Furness.”
To register for this year’s Tour de Furness, go to http://tourdefurness.co.uk/
The Bayb’s Maternity Appeal launched in February and now stands at £125,000 towards its £250,000 target. Bayb’s is funding “extras” for the new maternity unit being built at Furness General Hospital. These ”extras” fall outside the remit of what the NHS is able to fund but have been added to a shopping list of items, all designed to make the unit second to none in the country while giving it a real home from home feel for local families and for newborns, the best possible start in life.
To find out more about the appeal, visit Bay Hospitals Charity’s website at www.bayhospitalscharity.org
