CHARITY HEROES IN ASSOCIATION WITH
FOCUSING ON...
Fiat fans’ fundraising defies lockdown challenges
Charity HEROES
Craig Cheetham on not discounting the small guy…
It’s all too easy to focus on big numbers when it comes to charity fundraising, but to do so can sometimes undermine the efforts of the smaller, less well-known and unsung heroes whose efforts can be overshadowed by the telephone number-type figures raised by others. That’s why this month – and over the next few issues, with your help – we’ll be focusing on some of the lesser-known fundraisers out there.
Sure, the work of the big charities and the larger events is fantastic. Anything that raises funding to support those in need is commendable and well worth shouting about. But the very essence of Practical Classics is the community that surrounds it. This title thrives because in many ways, it’s one of the biggest car clubs in the entire world. As members of that community, our tastes are different but our motivation is the same.
So, to kick off a focus on our very own community this month, we’re zeroing in on the efforts of two fabulous young people. Georgina Wooten and Owen Burgess define what it is to be classic car enthusiasts even though they are still in their twenties. They have a collection of (mostly) Italian cars, many of which have been rescued and brought back to life. And despite multiple challenges that gave them a false start, this year they’re off to Italy to raise money for Prostate Cancer UK and Owen will be dressed as a giant panda. That’s what we do when it comes to getting noticed and raising money for causes that truly need it, and it’s a wonderful thing.
Craig Cheetham, PC Charities Correspondent
If you, your car club or your friends have got anything planned to raise money for charity, we absolutely want to hear about it and talk about it in these pages. Please drop us a line at practicalclassics@bauermedia.co.uk and we’ll help you in any way we can.
The best things come to those who wait, and for Georgina Wooten and Owen Burgess, the past three years have seen their original fundraising activity put on hold thanks to the global Covid-19 pandemic, followed by a rather hectic summer in 2022. But this year, the young couple from South Wales plan to go ahead with the idea they first came up with in 2019.
Georgina and Owen are raising as much money as possible for Prostate Cancer UK by driving a 31-year-old Fiat Panda to Pandino in Northern Italy, where a young Italian enthusiast accidentally set-up the world’s biggest Fiat Panda gathering after inviting
