Raystede Fundraisers Celebrated

East Sussex College Eastbourne hosts the Raystede Fundraiser of the Year awards.

The event (held on Thursday 17th January) celebrated the efforts of the Ringmer-based Animal Welfare Charity’s biggest fundraisers. Kings Restaurant, based on campus at ESC, welcomed nearly 100 guests for the evening, including Raystede CEO Hilary Goldsmith, Big Brother winner Jason Burrill and TV vet Marc Abraham.

Jason Burrill (Big Brother winner, Raystede supporter and local businessman), handed out the ‘paws’ awards to winners, which included the Hospitality and Catering team from the College, who won the ‘Top Community Champion’ award.

Oliver Zecchin, joint restaurant manager at Kings, alongside Laura Da Silva Henriques, said: “We are so happy to receive this award in recognition of supporting Raystede. It’s a wonderful charity and our students have been great in hosting fundraising events for them, including Afternoon Teas and Christmas Dinners. This has been a fantastic evening.”

Level 2 and Level 3 Hospitality and Catering students from the College prepared and presented a full vegan buffet on the evening, which included roast pumpkin croquette, chickpea curry, celeriac steak pesto sauce, stuffed aubergines, crispy polenta, baked apples, fresh fruit salad and vegan chocolate brownies.

Hilary Goldsmith, CEO of Raystede, said: “What a lovely evening! Our fundraisers are a hugely important part of the Raystede family – people who go out of their way to support us and raise money for animals in any way they can. Their selfless commitment to animal welfare is what allows us to continue our work, helping animals to live longer, happier lives.

“Raystede fundraisers come from all sectors of the community, from the very young who are just starting their animal welfare journey, to those who have been supporting us for a lifetime. We are delighted to be able to recognise their work at our Awards evening and offer a heartfelt ‘thank you’ on behalf of all of the Raystede staff, and the animals who have benefitted from their work.”