Scores of racegoers will experience the thrill of live greyhound racing at Central Park Stadium for the first time this spring, thanks to a new fundraising initiative launched by the track.
The Sittingbourne venue will operate its next Fund-Racer on Saturday, May 24, which several non-for-profit amateur sports clubs based in Kent have signed-up to.
It works by Central Park donating 100 free tickets to teams which register for a selected race night. Clubs then sell tickets to members, plus family and friends, and retain all profits from ticket sales to invest funds into the club however they wish.
Previous teams to participate have used money raised from Fund-Racer events to purchase new clubhouse equipment and reduce member registration fees.
May’s event has the potential to collectively raise more than £4,000, with Faversham Town Ladies and Medway United plus Rodmersham, Davington and Faversham cricket clubs all signed up.
Jon Haile, Duty Manager at Central Park Stadium, is looking forward to welcoming plenty of new racegoers trackside and supporting community clubs in the process.
“The Fund-Racer is our way of supporting local non-for-profit causes which enhance communities across Kent,” said Jon.
“We’re really pleased with the response to our May event and hope it helps cash-strapped teams raise important funds when times are challenging economically.
“We recognise a huge volume of sports clubs and community centres can use our Fund-Racer to help fund new equipment or provisions that will serve a positive purpose to local people.
“Therefore, we encourage any person connected to a local organisation interested in signing-up to one of our Fund-Racer events later in the year to drop our team a message so they’re first in line to register.”
The night will feature 12 live races from 6.30pm with each team that brings 50 or more guests assigned a trap number to support on the evening.
Points are scored depending on the outcomes of each race, with the team that accumulates the most points by the end of the night receiving a £100 donation from the track.
Vincent Taylor from Faversham CC said signing-up to Central Park’s May Fund-Racer was a no-brainer.
“We’re a social club and encourage our members to get involved with activities beyond the boundary rope,” said Vincent.
“For us, the Fund-Racer is a no-brainer. It’s an opportunity for everyone to enjoy a fun night out at the greyhounds while raising important funds for the club which we can put to use.
“A few of our members have never been to the greyhounds before, so we’re looking forward to coming trackside later this spring.”
Representatives of Kent-based non-for-profit sports clubs or community centres interested in signing up to one of Central Park’s Fund-Racer events later this year can contact the track on social media or email info@centralpark-greyhounds.co.uk.
