BMW 1 "Annie"

Way down West you will find a very special lady Anne Shaw hosting her weekly Gulval Dog Training sessions at Gulval village hall, and we are very blessed to say that Anne is a stalwart supporter of Cornwall Blood Bikes.

Her story began just over 4 years ago when Anne was out at Morrisons Penzance, doing her shopping and she came across our very own “Mr Mark” Holroyd.

Mark was the Fundraising Manager for the charity at the time, Mark worked tirelessly for the charity and did a wonderful job of laying the solid foundations on which the current Fundraising Manager, Ian Butler had to build on. Anne spoke with Mark at length about who we are, and what we do across Cornwall.

Her words when she left were:- “If you are lucky I MAY do a dog show for you”

Well Anne did do a dog show, and another, and another, cream teas, coffee mornings, sponsored walk’s followed and as they say the rest is history. Anne hasn’t just raised vital funds, but she has also done something that is equally if not more important for us, and that is to raise our awareness across Cornwall and how we can save the NHS money across Cornwall.

To date Anne has raised the outstanding sum of £18,500.00 for us.

Anne has been a phenomenal fundraiser and has been doing so for over 40 years. It is important to recognize not just the fundraising efforts she has gone to on our behalf but for other charities that have benefitted from her hard work such as The Stroke Appeal, Cornwall Animal Hospital, The Badger Trust, Cats Rescue, Cornwall Air Ambulance, Cornwall Hospice Care and so much more. Every single week the dog training classes that she hosts, all money is donated to animal charities or good causes/ charities across the County and beyond.

Anne is our very dear friend and we only had so many ways that our Fundraising manager could say thank you on behalf of the charity for such tremendous hard work to host these events and fundraise.

But there was only one way that we could say the biggest heartfelt thank you and to ensure that no matter where we go, or the journey we take, our friend is with us.

On Sunday 16th December 2018 Cornwall Blood Bike volunteers had a wonderful afternoon at the annual Christmas Fun Dog show hosted by Anne Shaw and Gulval Dog Training Club. An outstanding amount of in excess of £1,400.00 was raised.

We cannot thank everyone enough whether you donated, baked, attended or helped in anyway.

But that day was very special for another reason, as CBB had been keeping a secret for a while and had to wait until that day to unveil their surprise. On that Sunday afternoon PR Media Liaison Jayne Penlerick, stepped forward to introduce the charity and unbeknown to Anne who was surrounded by CBB volunteers and over 45 plus dogs and their owners, Jayne started to say what we do as a charity and how we do it, and then began to speak about Anne’s unwavering support. Anne who is a lady who does not like the limelight was more than a little embarrassed and started to make a hasty retreat towards the kitchen, but as she took the hand of Ian Butler, she was asked to step forward to lift the Cornish flag to unveil the name “Annie” to a rapture of applause from everyone.

It was a very special afternoon, with a great festive atmosphere and for us a very special moment that we have been waiting to reveal to everyone. From every volunteer at Cornwall Blood Bikes the biggest heartfelt thank you, and may “Annie” go onto to serve the County on operational duty and attending fundraising events and all riders stay safe.