Cancer Research UK Kids & Teens is Reading Buses new Charity of the Year for 2019 after conclusively winning a staff vote. Cancer Research UK gained around two-thirds of the total vote and beat two other charities that had been shortlisted.
As their Charity of the Year was being announced today (Monday), Reading Buses also revealed the newly wrapped bus that will become a familiar sight on local bus routes over the next 12 months.
Said Reading Buses Chief Executive Officer Robert Williams, “It is with great pleasure that I help launch the new Charity of the Year for Reading Buses, Cancer Research UK Kids & Teens.
“It is our twelfth year of charity partnerships, and the first since I joined the company. The charity won an employee vote by a landslide against some very strong charities so we are excited for the year ahead and hope that lots of our colleagues get involved in fundraising and supporting this great charity.
“We are determined to raise as much money as possible for Cancer Research UK Kids & Teens to help in their mission to try and find new, better and kinder treatments for children and young people with cancer.”
Reading Buses have, as always, pledged to support their charity of the year with all their available means such as; on-bus screens and posters, stories on their website, eNewsletter and social media amongst other activities and events.
The charity bus, wrapped in a design from Cancer Research UK Kids & Teens, will be the most high-profile of such activity and will run on most routes around Reading and the local area providing a very visible advert to increase awareness.
The company is also open to external ideas for fundraising activities to make the year an outstanding success.
“One thing we really want to get out of this year,” said Robert, “is for our customers to become very much a part of this partnership. Whether that is suggesting activities, donating to our fundraising efforts or even doing fundraising of their own, we would love to hear from them.”
Reading Buses say their staff are particularly keen to be involved in tribute to the bravery of Alex Shepard who sadly lost her life through cancer at the age of 22 last year. Alex had been a Reading Buses driver for two years.
Dr Áine McCarthy from Cancer Research UK said: “We’re extremely grateful to the staff of Reading Buses for choosing to support Cancer Research UK Kids & Teens in 2019.
“In the UK, cancer is the leading cause of death by disease past infancy in children and young people aged between 1 and 24. And we know that many survivors can experience serious, long-term side effects, including hearing loss.
“Through the generosity and support of Reading Buses and their customers, we hope as much money as possible is raised for Cancer Research UK Kids & Teens, which will be used to fund research to find new, better and kinder treatments for children and young people with cancer.”