ASDA staff in Enniskillen showed their support to their fellow colleagues from the supermarket’s headquarters who cycled around Northern Ireland for suicide prevention.
The team in Enniskillen provided the cyclists with a warm welcome as they arrived at their store as part of their 337 mile charity cycle visiting each of the supermarket’s 17 stores in Northern Ireland over just four days, covering an average of 80 miles per day.
All funds raised from the cycle are going to three chosen charities including NI suicide prevention charity PIPS, Asda’s Tickled Pink campaign supporting two breast cancer charities and Orchid, the male cancer charity.
The store has worked tirelessly for their local community with some of the local charities they have supported including Child Brain Injury and Cavanagh Community Group.
The challenge was in celebration of the first anniversary of Asda’s Community Life programme in Northern Ireland.
Asda’s Community Life initiative was launched in 2012, and is dedicated to making the communities around their stores and depots better places to live and work for colleagues and customers.
Every store has a Community Life Champion tasked with engaging with their local community and supporting families through volunteering, fundraising, building relationships and giving time.
In the space of just a year Asda staff have raised over £800,000 for charity and spent over 4,000 hours volunteering in their local communities.
Asda Enniskillen general store manager Peter Beckett said: “When our store heard that our four colleagues were coming over to do this amazing cycle ride they were eager to join in and do their bit.
“I am delighted that they have donated their time so generously and that colleagues and customers got behind it 100 per cent.
“It was a great day for our store with kind customers donating to the bucket collection and doing all they could do to raise money for this great cause.”
Founder of PIPS charity Philip McTaggart said: “PIPS Services rely solely on donations from the general public and from sponsors like Asda, without this funding PIPS Services would stop.
“The fundraising carried out by Asda colleagues has been brilliant. In October last year we had two counsellors, whereas today we now have 22 new sounsellors and 1 new therapist, this shows the need for these services, with the funds that Asda has raised we will be able to carry on our good work.”
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