The Woodley & Earley Lions Club Santa will be collecting money for Woodley Food Bank this year in recognition of the cost of living crisis.
A pick-up truck dubbed ‘Rudolph the red-nosed (Ford) Ranger’ donated by Select Van Leasing will pull the Christmas sleigh across the towns.
The club has organised a festive sleigh pull for charity for more than three decades, which sees Santa and his team of elves meeting and greeting families over November and December.
Mike Kennedy, President of the Woodley & Earley Lions Club, said: “The Woodley & Earley Lions Club sleigh ride has cemented itself as a real Christmas tradition in the local area.
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“We often see parents with their children who were themselves youngsters when they first enjoyed the sleigh. It’s an event that’s being passed-down through generations of the same family.
“For us it’s about the entire community coming together to spread some festive joy, while also raising funds for a worthy cause.
“So to have Rudolph the red-nosed Ford Ranger helping us out - thanks to Select Van Leasing - is something we’re extremely grateful for.”
The Club has raised more than £1 million pounds for charity since its inception in 1980 and has collected money for many different organisations, including supporting hospices and special needs schools as well as supplying a fully-equipped vehicle to Community First Responders.
This year focus turns to the Woodley Food Bank.
Mr Kennedy said: “We’re living through a cost of living crisis, so the Food Bank is clearly a worthy cause.
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“But there are lots of other worthy causes in our local area, and over the course of a year we like to spread our resources across lots of different charities and organisations in order to help as many people as we can.”
The Woodley & Earley Lions Club’s Christmas sleigh will be special guests at Reading F.C’s Select Car Leasing stadium on Saturday, December 10 between 1pm-3pm.
Daren Jasper, Head of Commercial Vehicles at Select Van Leasing, says: “When the Club reached-out to us for help with its Christmas sleigh pull, we really welcomed the opportunity.
“The Christmas sleigh brings so much joy to so many people - and it’s a tradition that’s familiar to many of the staff here at Select HQ, too.
“It’s fantastic to see our Ford Ranger ‘Wildtrak’ wearing its antlers and red nose so proudly! And we wish our ‘Rudolph’ well in his journey. We hope he puts a smile on many faces.”
You can see the full list of locations the Christmas sleigh will be visiting by heading to the Woodley & Earley Lions Club’s website.
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