A team from Mercedes-Benz Vans has once more pedalled the 62 miles between Manchester and Blackpool, netting another cash windfall of more than £20,000 for Cancer Research.
Held last Sunday (7 July 2019) at Media City, Salford, the latest sponsored cycle saw more than 80 Mercedes-Benz colleagues, customers, suppliers and friends take part. The ride is staged annually by The Christie cancer charity and over the last three years riders representing the brand have raised a total in excess of £65,000 for deserving causes.
The event also saw cyclists and supporters pay homage to former Mercedes-Benz van sales manager Tim Page, who lost his short battle with cancer earlier this year. A well-known and beloved figure within the Mercedes-Benz Vans Retail network, Page had worked at the Westbury headquarters of Dealer Group Rygor Commercials since 2003, having spent the previous seven years with East Anglia Dealer Orwell Truck & Van.
“Tim was a key member of the company team and greatly respected and loved by those he worked with,” said director Paul Reed, one of several Rygor colleagues who travelled up to Manchester to take part in the ride.
Also remembered once again was Martyn Donnelly, a former van sales manager with two Mercedes-Benz dealers in the North-East, who succumbed to the disease in 2017. His untimely death was the main focus of last year’s fundraising drive.
Mercedes-Benz Vans managing director Steve Bridge, who has now completed the ride in each of the last three years, said: “I’m tremendously proud of the Mercedes-Benz Vans team, and delighted that we’ve again smashed our £20,000 target.”
Supplementing the money raised through sponsorship contributions by participants, Mercedes-Benz Vans is also supporting Cancer Research UK through its Giving Back Programme.
Bridge continued: “While our former colleagues were certainly front of mind, we’ve all had loved ones who have died from or overcome cancer, or are struggling with it right now. Hopefully the money we’ve raised will mean that in the future more people like Tim and Martyn survive this awful disease.”
He added: “I’d like to pay special tribute to District Manager Liz Verwey, who pulls everything together each year on behalf of our Charity Committee, and for the ‘backroom’ team of drivers and others who give up their Sunday to provide such fantastic support. This truly is a team effort, so my thanks and a huge ‘Well done’ go to all.”
To donate to the Mercedes-Benz Vans UK fundraising, click here.
