Lincoln College Vacation Project Newsletter 2014 Lincoln College Vacation Project is a registered charity led entirely by the students of Lincoln College, Oxford. In our 43rd year now, we provide a week of fun filled activities for disadvantaged children local to the Oxford area during the summer holidays, and for some of whom it is their first time away from home and 2014 was another very successful year for the charity and we were able to offer a place to 36 children. The holiday runs as two consecutive weeks, one for 7-9 year olds and one for 10-12 years olds, each under the supervision of 12 student leaders. We were very grateful to St Katherine’s Parmoor who have continued to accommodate us for the third year running on their magnificent site outside Henley-on-Thames. The chance to stay in such a beautiful house for the week was a very exciting experience for the children who loved exploring the various rooms and hallways, including the piano room where we held our very own talent show and disco on the last night. The vast grounds were home to countless games of football, stuck in the mud and hide and seek in the evenings, and the children loved meeting St Katherine’s resident chickens, who acquired many names on the trip! Each day began with an incredible breakfast spread to get the children (and leaders!) fuelled and ready before launching straight into the busy day ahead. Activities varied slightly between the holidays to accommodate the different ages and ranged from ice skating and rock climbing to dragon boating and bowling, and of course the very eagerly awaited trips to Whipsnade Zoo, Legoland and Chessington World of Adventures, all of which were enjoyed by children and leaders alike! On return to St Katherine’s the children then fed their endless energy into more activities and games in the long summer evenings. With the help of all of our donations we were able to bring a wide collection of sports equipment and craft resources which all the children really enjoyed getting stuck in to, including cartoon drawing and the mass production of countless loom bands - a craze which at least the leaders were all new to! Registered charity no.1092434 www.vacproj.co.uk Registered charity No.1092434 www.vacproj.co.uk A message from our 2014 president, Tom Hainge: "The degree of success that VacProj continued to demonstrate last year was entirely due to to commitment and energy of all the people involved. The student committee and holiday leaders’ incredible performance meant that The 2014 Committee: President – Tom Hainge Secretary – Eleanor Mckay Treasurer - Ed Lewis Fundraising – Lucy Cross and Neill Shurville Social Services Liaisons– Movin Abeywickrema and Rachel Sears both holidays ran without any major hiccups. We continue to be very grateful for the consistent support that our advisory committee and trustees offer us in their spare time. And most importantly last year's holidays could not have run as they did without the incredible generosity of all of our donors; you allowed us to help 36 disadvantaged children have a care free week away." We are very excited to be taking over our new positions on the committee and become involved in the running of such an incredible and unique charity. Of course we could not provide either of the holidays without the continued support of our donors and the immense fundraising effort required to reach our target of £22,500 and we would like to express our gratitude to everyone who has contributed to this worthy cause. This year’s fundraising efforts are already well under way with plans for the well-established Vacrproj auction of promises, bucket collections, photo booths and even a fancy dress hall which the whole of college can get involved in and all very excited for! We are keen to raise as much money and awareness as possible, which is not a simple task being a small charity with such ambitious aims, so we can continue to help the lives of so many children for many years to come. This year we are also excited to welcome a new VacProj trustee, Jack Dunn, the chaplain at Lincoln College We would like to express our great thanks to the VacProj advisory committee and trustees for their continued work year-round to enable the holiday to take place and are very much looking forward working with them on planning the 2015 holiday. Where to fnd us: Visit our website at www.vacproj.co.uk or drop us an email on [email protected] Facebook - www.facebook.com/vacproj Twitter - @VacProj Also see mydonate.bt.com/charities/lincolncollegevacationproject Registered charity no.1092434 www.vacproj.co.uk . Registered charity no.1092434 www.vacproj.co.uk