Fundraising siblings keep Saddleworth Beerwalk alive with fourth unofficial event

A COMMITTED fundraising brother and sister will be keeping Saddleworth’s legendary Beerwalk alive with their unofficial event on Saturday, May 30.

2015-05-22 20.50.26
FUNDRAISERS: Angie and Justin Brown

Headed by Justin Brown and his sister Angie, a team of stalwarts will make their 11-mile trek around some of the local villages.

And ironically their walk this year will be aimed at supporting Saddleworth Round Table, who had to scrap their original Beerwalk because of problems.

Now in its fourth year, the unofficial event has brought together loyal followers determined to keep the spirit of the original colourful community event alive.

The enthusiastic siblings are encouraging other locals on Facebook to join in, building on the success of their previous three unofficial walks.

Last year, more than 80 fun-loving revellers, dressed in creative fancy dress, took part in the cross-village ramble.

Justin, 46, a joiner from Delph, said: “The original Beerwalk raised tens of thousands of pounds for local charities over the years.

“Saddleworth Round Table plough all their efforts giving to the community, so this year we decided to celebrate their efforts by supporting them.

“We plan to enjoy another fantastic day. We want to keep Saddleworth traditions alive. I hope the event will snowball and keep on growing every year.

“Everyone who turns up comes to enjoy themselves, and I think the villagers really appreciate the different fancy dress and themes.

“Last year we got plenty of favourable comments from passersby, and drivers sounded their horns in encouragement on the route.

“We’ll be stopping off at most of the pubs on the original beerwalk. I’m sure they appreciate the business.”

“There was absolutely no trouble last year – everyone came for a good time. We are all locals and we plan to keep it that way.”

This year Justin and Angie revealed their own 11-strong team will be dressed as lobsters, complete with tights and big false claws.

Angie, who owns a hair salon in Greenfield, said: “We grew up loving the beerwalk and its ideals, and we want the spirit to stay alive.”

Matthew Sykes, Saddleworth Round Table Chairman, welcomed the move to keep alive a walk that was started by his predecessors 38 years ago.

He said: “It was taken to heart by our friends, relatives, neighbours and residents of the villages. It’s an expression of the Saddleworth community spirit.”

 

2 Replies to “Fundraising siblings keep Saddleworth Beerwalk alive with fourth unofficial event”

  1. I have no issue with people doing this beer walk and I did one the official ones years ago. However, living on the route of the walk is not always pleasant and having people urinate on my garden in clear viee of me is not appreciated. As long as people show respect I dont mind but alcohol doesnt always give best judgement.

  2. Most people love it – the odd nutcase can’t see the good in it like one chap who insised I remove some glass bottles we had placed carefully in his recycling bin rather than walk eight miles with them.

    His bin was as empty as his soul!

    The group that took part were fun loving easy going types – they drank beer, got merry and spread a lot of happiness. They also spent quite a lot of money in the area as well as raised a small amount for charity.

    There was nothing to dislike about it at all. Long may it continue.

Comments are closed.