January 2010 Newsround

The Oaklands Park Band recently performed their specially written song in Exminster to the delight of pupils at Exminster School.

Oaklands Park is a Special School and, supported by The Helen Foundation, engaged Wren Music to create and perform a witty song backed by an enthusiastic band. The band plan to play at other venues in Devon. David Faulkner of Wren Music writes:"I am really very happy with the way the morning went. The children were exceptionally focused and enjoyed the whole experience. They were not fazed by such a large audience. It was a really positive experience all round."

Great stuff Oaklands!

Ellie Creasor, now aged 12, pictured here below (centre) holding her original design, won the Teignbridge-wide competition sponsored by The Helen Foundation to design a cloth bag that will encourage recycling and help rid Teignmouth of plastic bags - just like the town of Modbury in Devon.

Both the competition and the production of the bag were managed by Teignbridge District Council and artist Lauren Ballard. Ellie's terrific design - created when she was just 10 years old and at primary school - caught the eye of the judges and is now to be seen proudly used around Teignmouth. Well done Ellie!

On Tuesday 8th December, Words for Voices and the St David's Singers perfomed a seasonal offering of music and readings in the beautiful Powderham Castle Music Room, by kind permission of the Earl of Devon and of the Countess of Devon, one of the Foundation's Patrons. This was a truly memorable evening and a perfect curtain-raiser for the Christmas season. The event raised over £900 for the Foundation. Our warmest thanks go to everyone involved.

Mr Savo is a Torquay-based entertainment entrepreneur who each year runs a major Christmas bash to co-incide with his birthday and to help raise funds for charity. In 2009 he kindly nominated The Helen Foundation to be the charity beneficiary and his 2009 circus-themed bash at Bohemia Night Club on 20th December was a great success! Thank you Mr. Savo!

Julian Brown approached us before Christmas with an offer we couldn't refuse...

During the amazing Muse "A Seaside Rendezvous" concerts in Teignmouth in September, Julian's photographer sister Lizzie Everard took this great photograph of the laser lights from the gig caught beautifully behind the tower of St Michael's Church, Teignmouth. He offered to print 5,000 cards before Christmas and sell them to benefit jointly The Helen Foundation and St Michael's Church. The cards sold really well raising £250 for each charity.

Many people have approached us asking if there are any left. The cards are blank inside for your own message and, like puppies, are not just for Christmas. Do let us know by email to The Helen Foundation if you would like to order some at £2.50 for 10 (with envelopes), £3.00 if you require them to be posted to you (within UK only). A real bargain for such a unique card. And a great way to send messages or thank you notes to friends and family. Thank you so much Julian and Lizzie. You can check out Lizzie's website at: www.lizzieeverard.com

The Teignmouth Players' pantomime this year is Little Red Riding Hood. They nominated Childen's Hospice South West and The Helen Foundation as joint beneficiaries of the bucket collections that take place at the end of each performance. The show continues until Saturday 9th January and anyone who loves pantomime should go along and support this delightful show. Thank you Players! Helen loved her time on stage in Teignmouth with the Players and it's very clear just how much the current group of young people are enjoying their acting. OH YES THEY DO!

On Friday 11th December, local indie rock band The Quails hosted Teignmouth's first under-18 music festival at The Arts Centre at Teignmouth Community College - called The Smile Festival. Supporting The Quails was Sophie Mendoza and her band (some of whom, like the Quails, are past students of the College) and Atrio. The event raised money for The Helen Foundation and we are very grateful to the College and all the friends and supporters who came along. The Quails Manager, Sarah Woodward, needs a special mention for all the work she put in. The fund-raising was supplemented by an improptu bucket collection at The Quails highly popular gig at The Royal Standard, Shaldon just before Christmas.

Thank you Quails - Dan, Chris, Sam, Max and John - and best of luck for 2010!

Marie Clark bid successfully on Charity Ebay for the signed un-used Muse ticket and Muse poster from the Muse "A Seaside Rendezvous" gigs in Teignmouth in September. A well-wisher also generously contributed to make the total raised through the auction up to £500. Thank you Marie - enjoy your great souvenirs.

Get those trainers out of the cupboard and on your feet.! You know it makes sense...

Of course you always meant to take part in the British 10K London Run and now the time has come to commit yourself. On Sunday 11th July 2010, The Helen Foundation enters a team for the fifth year running in what has become the major fund-raising event of the year. The 10km route takes you past many of central London's world famous landmarks including St James's Palace, Trafalgar Square, St Paul's Cathedral, the Millennium Bridge, the London Eye, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey.

It really is a tremendous event to take part in and we are asking everyone who has run in the past to run again and bring a friend to make our largest ever team for this special fifth anniversary run. The after-run get together is always great fun too! We have had such a lot of fun these past 4 years and 2010 promises to be even better. Have a look at our website, go to the "gallery" section and check out the photos from the British 10K London Run events from 2006 to 2009 to get a flavour of what it is like.

If you wish to take part this year, please email our trusty THF 10k Team organiser as soon as possible: Ben Galloway.

It is possible that this will be the last year we do the 10K London Run (though we shall do something equally exciting in future) so if you have been thinking about it in the past and haven’t yet taken the plunge – go for it!