Council to double Lingen Davies fundraiser at Shrewsbury Auction Centre

Telford & Wrekin Council has agreed to match fund all donations made to Lingen Davies Cancer Support at a special charity fundraiser to celebrate the 20th birthday of Shrewsbury Auction Centre on Tuesday, April 7.

Halls, based at Battlefield, Shrewsbury, is holding a Lingen Davies Farmers Day at their weekly livestock market when farmers will have the chance to donate a lamb, sheep, calf or cow to be auctioned for the charity or to make a cash donation.

It will be left to individual farmers to decide whether they wish to support the charity or not. Halls will donate its commission from the sale of donated livestock to the charity.

Farmers and buyers have been donating money to a Lingen Davies Cancer Support account opened by Halls since the special charity day was announced in February. Donations have been received at Shrewsbury and Bishops Castle livestock markets and at machinery sales conducted by Halls.

The fund currently stands at in excess of £2,000 with many individual donations received. One of the donations was from Stuart Ashley, a sheep and beef farmer from Cothercott, near Shrewsbury who came up with the Lingen Davies Farmers Day idea.

Stuart, who’s a Lingen Davies Shrewsbury fundraising committee member, donated a hogget, raising £150 for the charity, while another hogget donated by W. G. Richards and Co, Mellington at Bishops Castle livestock market ended up raising £800 after being sold five times.

“Most farmers will either have lost someone to cancer or have a family member or friend who has been successfully treated or is currently having treatment,” he said.

“We are all in the same boat and this auction is a chance for the farming community to work together to do something good. Nobody is going to be under pressure to donate money, but every little bit helps.”

Halls director James F. Evans also received a £250 donation for the fund from a farmer following a farm dispersal sale. “The great support we have received to date is an example of the generosity that exists in the farming community,” he said.

“We are hoping that even more farmers get behind the Lingen Davies Farmers Day to celebrate the 20th birthday of Shrewsbury Auction Centre on Tuesday.

“We all pray that we will never need cancer treatment but, if we do, it’s reassuring to know that Lingen Davies is there to help. This is our chance to give back to enable the charity to support even more patients.”

The Farmers Day is timely, as a £5 million Sunflower Appeal has been launched to open a Lingen Davies Cancer Centre with 30 chemotherapy bays at Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital.

Currently, patients from the Telford area must travel to the busy Lingen Davies Cancer Centre at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, which also serves the Shrewsbury area and Mid Wales.

Farmer’s daughter Angela Hill, a Lingen Davies Cancer Support community fundraiser and chairman of the charity’s Shrewsbury Fundraising Committee, was successfully treated for cancer 10 years ago.

She thanked Halls for agreeing to host the Lingen Davies Farmers Day and Telford & Wrekin Council for generously pledging to match the sum raised.

“Cancer affects so many people in our community and the donations from Farmers Day on April 7 will help to double the capacity of cancer services in Shropshire and Mid Wales,” she said.

“Thanks to the amazing offer by Telford & Wrekin Council, every £1 donated will become £2, so I appeal to farmers to please support Lingen Davies Cancer Support on April 7 and help people sadly diagnosed with cancer in our community.”

Shropshire Young Farmers Clubs, which has adopted Lingen Davies Cancer Support as one of their charities this year, is also supporting the Farmers Day.

Picture caption:

Farmer Stuart Ashley and Angela Hill from Lingen Davies Cancer Support with Halls director James Evans.