Team Margot had a fabulous evening on Tuesday night at the Parkdean Resorts charity dinner, at the Sheraton Grand in London, which was a fundraiser in support of Team Margot Foundation.

I have pasted the press release below, however suffice to say that the trustees were all blown away by how amazingly well the evening went & in particular at the outcome: an astonishing £80,000 raised for the charity on the night.

Incredible.

Amongst other things, we celebrated the free, week-long family escapes that Parkdean Resorts offer families caring for child cancer patients, via the hospital networks we have built up over the years.

It’s a really sensitive and understanding approach from Parkdean Resorts – I can tell you from first hand experience, how precious time away from hospital and from that environment can be and feel, when you’re battling cancer.

The show of love and generosity, from not only the people in the room that night but also from the many hundreds of employees throughout the Parkdean Resorts business, is really humbling. Everyone has wholeheartedly embraced what we do ever since Team Margot became Parkdean Resorts corporate charity at the start of last year.

Thank you doesn’t seem enough, but thank you all so much again.

Team Margot
Together, saving lives

Margot’s father sets the scene

Parkdean Resorts hosted a charity dinner on Tuesday night, bringing together friends, family and colleagues to share our enthusiasm and our love for the work of Team Margot, raising an incredible £80,000 in the process.

Over 350 guests enjoyed a three-course dinner, a charity auction, and live music and dancing performances, all hosted by Strictly Come Dancing judge Anton Du Beke.

Team Margot campaigns for every individual who is eligible, particularly those of mixed heritage, to register as blood, organ, stem cell and bone marrow donors.

In October 2013, 14-month-old Margot Martini was diagnosed with an extremely rare form of blood cancer, and required a bone marrow transplant (also known as a stem cell transplant) to stand the best chance of survival. Family and friends came together as Team Margot to raise awareness of Margot’s plight and others desperately seeking a blood stem cell donor match.

To date, Team Margot has either donated or made grants of over £500,000, and funds raised at last night’s dinner will go towards people and projects close to Team Margot’s hearts.

Parkdean Resorts first partnered with Team Margot in February 2020, as it became our first formal corporate charity partnership. More than 18 months later, having faced COVID and the restrictions of lockdowns, last night’s dinner represented a long-awaited opportunity to do something in person, together.

Parkdean Resorts’ 9,000 people have spent hours raising money for Team Margot by any means possible throughout lockdown, which included dancing in their kitchens and walking laps of their gardens or parks in fancy dress. Their enthusiasm was powered by the very powerful story of Team Margot and the great work it does with families very much in need of support.

Steve Richards, CEO Parkdean Resorts

Some feedback from one of the families who have taken up the free holiday offer from Parkdean Resorts

Steve Richards, CEO of Parkdean Resorts, said: “We are proud to support Team Margot. We want our community and charitable actions to make a real difference where it is needed the most, raising charity funds through local and national events, and supporting our local communities as well. During the last 12 months we have, across all of our Parks, been running, cycling, jumping, and doing just about anything we can to raise awareness and donations for Team Margot, and last night’s event was a wonderful way to bring our friends and colleagues together to raise money for an incredible cause.”

Yaser Martini, Margot’s father, said: “Everyone at Team Margot is an unpaid volunteer. We willingly give our efforts & energy to spread the word, in our own time and in our own way, and we do what we do because we want to make a difference: we want to help save the lives of all those people who, just like Margot and our family, never thought they’d need a bone marrow transplant, blood or organ donation. Events like last night’s dinner go a long way to helping us continue on our mission, and we’re grateful to Steve and the whole Parkdean team for their ongoing support for Team Margot.”