Doing a good deed feels great, doing a good deed at Christmas somehow feels even better. The 5th annual VW Heritage Santa Cruise to The Children’s Trust was upon us again, and we were hoping for a fantastic turn out for this brilliant charity event.
Whilst the morning of 14th December was bright, come noon the skies had darkened and rain was falling. It would of been lovely to have booked sunshine for this most special of Sundays, but sadly this was out of our control!
Our car park filled up slowly to start with as our Santa Cruisers arrived in suitably seasonal steeds. Tinsel on transporters, and baubles on Beetles, well maybe not baubles but a cow and some Minions on a Beetle roofrack for sure! There was plenty of effort put in to make sure fellow road users were aware ‘Christmas was on its way!
As the clock ticked down to departure, we had a sea of Santas all raring to go. Money had been taken, maps handed out, and even some special edition window stickers to mark the occasion were gifted to those who came along to support.
The convoy consisted of 50 or so classic VWs; inside 70 Santas and festive friends were taking the hour drive to Tadworth to spread the Christmas cheer. Presents from participants added to the already evident generosity, a total of £525 was raised for the charity (with VW Heritage donating the costs of the suits) and at least 20 gifts were given for the staff to hand to the children later on.
Once there, we mingled with staff, children and their families and carers. Christmas music was playing, and a spread of food and hot drinks were on offer to warm the cockles and feed any weary travellers. Keen to capture the day, before the light escaped us, we posed for photographs, before disbanding and heading home – with a warm feeling inside and smiles across our faces.
A very big thank you to The Children’s Trust for having us, to everyone who came along and made it possible, and to Dave and Fiona from Dave Warren Images, who joined us and captured the event for VW Vibe magazine. They have kindly let us use a few photos, and we look forward to reading about it in a forthcoming issue.
Here’s to a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New year
Andy