Accountants at a Midlands firm made waves as they embarked on a charity challenge which saw them row the distance from Birmingham to Venice in just 24 hours.
The team at Prime Accountants Group took turns on rowing machines – and called on the help of clients, family and friends – to cover the 798-mile distance between the two canal cities on Friday 19 May, raising over £14,000 for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity.
In total, 78 people took part, completing 288 half-hour stints of rowing as shoppers passed by at Touchwood Shopping Centre in Solihull.
The money raised will go towards funding a vital new iMRI machine for the children’s hospital’s operating theatre, which will enable surgeons to see live MRI scan images during procedures.
Leigh Dudley, director at Prime Accountants, said: “It was a long 24 hours for those involved in the row, but we’re so proud of everyone’s commitment and hard work.
“The atmosphere was brilliant, with so many people volunteering to row and supporters cheering us on, offering great encouragement.
“We always try and go the extra mile to raise money for local charities, so this time we did that literally – covering nearly 800 miles is an incredible achievement.
“We have offices in Birmingham, Coventry and Solihull, so Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity is an important cause close to us which we have been proud to support for the past five years.”
The epic row is the first of five charity initiatives which the Prime team plan to complete over the next 12 months, with each raising money for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity.
Katie Harris, corporate partnerships officer from the charity, said: “We are always blown away by the Prime team’s commitment to fundraising – they are always keen to take on crazy challenges to help us in our efforts to provide the vital care our patients need.
“This year’s fundraising activity will go directly towards a new iMRI machine for our operating theatre. Our hospital is home to one of the largest paediatric neurosurgical centres in the UK, but we are the only one without state-of-the-art intraoperative MRI (iMRI) technology.
“With this technology, an MRI scanner is moved directly to a patient on an operating table, or a patient to the scanner, to ensure surgeons can obtain ‘live’ and up-to-date information about the position of a tumour. The scanner will also transform brain surgery and epilepsy surgery for children at our hospital.
“The efforts of the Prime team will play a big role in our fundraising activities for this vital piece of equipment.”
To show your support for the Prime team’s charity row, visit www.justgiving.com/page/prime-accountants-group-rowingchallenge2023.
For more information on Prime Accountants Group, visit www.primeaccountants.co.uk or call 0121 711 2468.