The headline sponsor for Newark’s hugely popular Dragon Boat Festival has been announced, as the event gears up to make a splash for two good causes.
GXO Logistics will return as the headline sponsor for the third year running — as teams are set to once again take to the Trent in aid of Beaumond House Hospice Care and the Child Bereavement Centre.
Helen Johnson, human resources manager at GXO, said: “We at GXO Logistics partner with Currys, and love to be part of this wonderful day. We enjoy being part of this community and see everyone come together for fun and laughter, with a side of competition. All of this is in aid of these wonderful charities.”
Inspire and Newark and Sherwood District Council have also joined as an event partners.
Clare Janes from Inspire Newark Buttermarket added: “The Inspire Buttermarket team were thrilled to take part in the Dragon Boat Festival in 2023 and it’s now become a regular, ‘not to be missed’, date on our calendar.
“We went along to support the event by running a free dragon puppet workshop with artist Ling Peng and to talk to the local community about all the great courses we have taking place at the new Inspire Buttermarket facility in Newark. We were also able to provide the hilarious Damsels in Distress, who rode on their trusty dragons, scoping out the festival for any available hansom princes’ and while they made people smile, we gave out our publicity.
“The day was a really effective way of spreading news about positive educational opportunities in the area and we’re looking forward to having an even larger area in 2024, when Inspire College join us to talk to young people about the courses we can offer them in Newark.
“The event was really well organised, with lots of staff and many, many volunteers ‘on-hand’ to offer help where needed and there was a great range of high-quality food and drink stalls. I’d recommend the event to anybody who wants to raise awareness of what they are doing in the Newark area and anyone who wants to make a positive contribution to these worthy causes.”
There are even more opportunities for companies to get involved and support the event, such as sponsoring the event medals and boats.
For more details, contact Rachel at the Children's Bereavement Centre via rachel@childrensbereavementcentre.co.uk or on 01636 600120.
A total of 39 crews will take to the water on Sunday, September 15, for the fifth Newark Dragon Boat Festival, jointly organised by Beaumond House Hospice Care and the Child Bereavement Centre.
Each team will take part in three races with the fastest teams going through to the semi-final.
As well as the boat races, there will be fun for all the family including live music, inflatables, local food and drink.
