The annual St Albans Question of Sport dinner at Sopwell House saw 240 businessmen and women pit their sporting wits against each other in aid of Rennie Grove Hospice Care.
Sky Sports presenter Geoff Shreeves compered the evening, bringing humour and wit to the room while reminding guests of the cause they were there to support.
Geoff explained; “I’m really pleased that the Question of Sport dinner has returned to St Albans for the fourth time. It started out as a concept and we were tentative as to how it would be received but the support from local businesses has been fantastic. It’s a great laugh as well as being about supporting a local charity and helping them raise money to ensure they can continue provide their services to patients and families in the Herts area.”
Mark Bunting from headline sponsor Aitchison Raffety gave a speech to kick off the evening: “We are proud to support the good work that Rennie Grove does in the local area. It’s an enjoyable evening that we look forward to each year and I’m sure we will be coming back again.”
He added: “If anything were to happen to me, I know that Rennie Grove would be my first port of call. I’m reassured to know that should I need them, they will be there to offer care and support to me and my family, giving me the choice to be cared for at home.”
After several heated rounds the winners of the Question of Sport Quiz 2017 were announced as PwC UK.
Team captain Simon King said; “We’ve been coming to this event for two or three years now and we think it’s brilliant. It’s always good fun, the atmosphere is amazing and you know you are supporting a tremendous local cause. We will certainly be coming back next year to defend our title!”
Sue Varvel, director of nursing and clinical services at Rennie Grove gave a heart-warming and emotional speech before the auction that hushed the entire room.
After her speech, Sue said: “Last year this event raised enough money to fund a specialist nurse for a year. Every year each one of our nurses will help hundreds of patients dealing with cancer or other life-limiting illness and their families. With the number of referrals to our service continuing to rise rapidly, ensuring that we can fund the salaries of enough nurses is of paramount importance so that we can see everyone who needs us, when they need us. That’s why events like this are so important.”
Sue added: “I think it’s a fabulous evening. I hardly get any of the answers right but I still get wrapped up in the excitement and try to have a go and join in. It’s lovely to see so many local businesses supporting Rennie Grove and just enjoying themselves.”
This year’s Question of Sport 2017 raised a grand total of £45,000. Rennie Grove would like to thank the local businesses of St Albans for coming along and supporting the charity and making such a vital contribution to their work.
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