BENEVOLENT BEER DRINKERS BACK CHARITY

 

Beer drinkers in Leeds city centre have given 130 people in Africa lasting access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene following a £2,000 donation last weekend.

Visitors to the Leeds International Beer Festival last weekend donated spare tokens to Yorkshire Water colleagues collecting on behalf of international charity WaterAid.

The four-day festival fundraising effort, which also included merchandise sales, will make a real difference to the lives of people in Ethiopia, one of the key areas of focus for WaterAid.

Dave McGlinchey from Yorkshire Water, who volunteering to represent WaterAid at the event, said: “We were amazed by how generous people were over the four days and really impressed with the organisation of the event itself.

“That £2,000 will have such a big impact on the lives of the people that WaterAid works with. We’d like to encourage our customers to help make a difference to people across the wider developing world by donating just £3 with a text of SAFEWATER to 70300.”

Darren Potter, Organiser of Leeds International Beer Festival, said: “We're absolutely thrilled by the total amount raised for Water Aid at the 3rd Leeds international Beer Festival. As our official charity for the second consecutive year we've developed a strong relationship with Water Aid and audiences have shown their generous support by making donations that will contribute to the crucial work that Water Aid undertake. We look forward to continuing our support of Water Aid at future Beer Festivals and developing the relationship further.”

A petition has been set up to make sure that water and sanitation make their shortlist after they failed to prioritise it back in 2000 when it was last discussed. You can sign the petition at www.wateraid.org/uk/YorkshireEE