A Whole Hose-d of Fun as Rochdale Firefighters raise £814 for Firefighters Charity

Volunteers and firefighters at Rochdale Community Fire Station in Halifax Road, Rochdale held their annual charity car wash to raise money for the Firefighters Charity in early March.

Firefighters from White Watch were joined by a group of cadets from Mossley along with Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) volunteers and even the boroughs chaplain, David Sivill, got stuck in as more than £800 was raised for The Fire Fighters Charity.

As is the tradition, a number of local organisations came together on the day to support the car wash by donating various products along with cash contributions. The fire station received a variety of car cleaning products such as wash and wax as well as sponges and cloths.

A local bakery also got in on the action as they turned up in their delivery van and provided the firefighters and volunteers with refreshments and even threw £10 in the bucket for a van wash.

Gary Weight, White Watch Manager at Rochdale said: “We are extremely grateful to everyone who came to have their car washed and supported a fantastic charity.

“We couldn’t have put this event on without the support of a number of great companies and individuals that backed us including the GMFRS volunteers and cadets”.

The Fire Fighters Charity are a fantastic, proactive organisation who rely on the support of fire station car washes and other fundraising events to be able to continue the work they do in our communities. The support they offer firefighters and their families through difficult times, whether it be a result of physical injury or mental health and wellbeing, is invaluable.

Rochdale Station Manager, Mark Doggett added: “It’s fantastic that everyone bought into the car wash, the support from the community was phenomenal. Between opening our doors at 11.30am and closing them at around 4.30pm, there wasn’t a time when we didn’t have a car in the station getting a wash so it was really lucky that the crew didn’t get a call out!

“We had loads of positive comments throughout the day and one lady even donated £50. That’s the biggest single donation I’ve seen at one of our car washes so that was great”.