Round Table is celebrating 78 years of fun and work in the community

One of the best known service and fellowship organisations in the world, Round Table is celebrating 78 years of fun and work in the community, having raised a staggering 300 million over the years for charity. The club for men aged 18 to 45 has over 12,000 members in 866 Tables throughout the UK (www.roundtable.org.uk), including Southend-on-Sea 106 in Southend which was founded in 1935.

Southend Round Table 106 is well known for its work in the Local Community.

Our major fundraising event is the annual Fireworks Spectacular this year held at Shoebury East Beach. This event will see many thousands of spectators attend a great evening of fun and entertainment. The success of this event can be partially measured by the sponsors that we have attracted. This year we have secured the valuable sponsorship of the areas leading Mobile Phone Supplier ìMPC Westcliffî who have made a considerable financial contributions towards the costs associated with the event as well as the valuable support of the ìEVENING ECHOî. The Firework Spectacular will see thousands of pounds worth of fireworks launched into the night sky with over 3,000 worth being set off in the final few minutes. The whole evening will be compared by leading DJ ìMAT OSBORNEî. There will also be a thrilling Fun Fair. Amazingly enough the whole display is entirely organised by Southend Round Table 106 members on a purely voluntary basis and takes over ten months to organise. Its success can be attributed to its many years of experience dating back to our earliest displays at Southend Unitedís Roots Hall Football Ground in the 1970ís.

In past years Special Community Service Projects have included the creation of a Sensory Garden at Lancaster School, Prittlewell Chase as part of a 20,000 project. Financial beneficiaries include:-

Southend Hospital, Lady McAddenís BUST Unit, The Samaritans, SCOPE, St. John Ambulance, Fairhavens Hospice, Elizabeth Venture Play Scheme MS Society, Walk the Walk for Breast Cancer, The Cystic Fibrosis Trust, Kingsdown School, Essex Fire and Rescue, Foulness Preservation Society, RNLI,
Susan Gale Fund, Essex Air Ambulance, SCENT, The Mayors Southend Fund, Little Havens, Cerebral Palsy Sufferers, Lancaster School, Many Scouts, Beaver and Explorer Groups

This years benificaries include:
Advanced Surgical Equiptment Trust - Southend Hospital - www.sh-charities.org/aset.html
The Southend Fund - www.essexcommunityfoundation.org.uk/
CRUSE - www.crusebereavementcare.org.uk/contact_us.htm

In the past three yearís alone we have donated to various funds. The Cystic Fibrosis Trust was a particular favourite, together with three other local Round Table Groups we financed the purchase of 35 nebulizers for child sufferers of Cystic Fibrosis in the Southend area, this greatly improving their quality of life. We are always looking for new beneficiaries and invite anyone to contact us if you feel we can be of any assistance.

We are extremely proud of the role that Round Table plays in Southend. It gives us a real sense of achievement, whether we are raising funds for local charities or helping out in the community and at the same time we have great fun all working together.

Round Table currently raises around 6 million a year, primarily for local causes but also on occasion for National charities such as Childrenís Wish, which has given over 500 seriously ill youngsters a trip of a lifetime, while the Anthony Nolan Bone Marrow Trust has also benefited, not just from fund-raising but also from Tablers offering the gift of life by registering as bone marrow donors.

Round Table was founded in Norwich in 1927 by Louis Marchesi, the son of a Swiss Confectioner. The 29-year-old had been a member of Norwich Rotary Club but wanted to mix with younger men closer to his own age. He gathered a few men ìround the tableî ñ hence the name Round Table - and inspired them by quoting from a speech that the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) had just made:

ìThe young business and professional men of this country must get together round the table, adopt methods that have proved so sound in the past, adapt them to the changing needs of the times and, whenever possible, improve them.î

ëAdopt, adapt and improveí remains Round Tableís motto 75 years on, and reflects the creative, innovative and sometimes madcap approach to raising money for good causes!

The movement also retains the same principles it held then ñ it is an independent, non-political, non-sectarian organisation, founded on good citizenship. Wives and partners are invited to join the womenís equivalent of Table, called Ladies Circle, that has corresponding aims.

Southend 106 meets every fortnight at The County Hotel, Aviation Way and are keen to invite other young men to get involved in serving the community and have a good time whilst doing it. If you are interested in joining, please contact Southend Round Table on 07010 728106.