Buchan parents, staff and friends and the local business community came together on Saturday 29th June to attend a spectacular fundraising evening, the ICT Buchan Auction Dinner Dance. The black tie event, which was themed ‘Iconic Hollywood’, was held in a marquee in the grounds of The Buchan and was attended by over 180 guests. It was organised by the Friends at Buchan (FAB), which helps raise money for school projects.
The focus of the evening was on raising money to update and improve The Buchan’s ICT Suite, so that pupils can benefit from learning to use the latest IT software on updated hardware. The night was supported by Manx Educational Foundation (MEF), who sponsored the live and silent auctions, while business IT specialist Skanco Business Systems was the ICT sponsor and provided the main raffle prize, an Apple iPad (Retina Display) 128GB.
The Hollywood theme was emphasised with guests walking along a red carpet into the marquee which was decorated black and white with a giant ice Oscar and pictures of Hollywood icons replacing the usual table numbers. Guests were treated to a champagne reception before sitting down to a three course dinner followed by an exciting auction compered by Keith Kerruish from Chrystals. There was also a silent auction which ran through the evening. Guests could buy raffle tickets for a jeroboam of champagne, courtesy of Oddbins Online and there was also a raffle with fantastic prizes.
Big item sponsors for the auction included Manx Telecom, who generously donated a Manx Telecom cycling shirt signed by Tour de France winner Mark Cavendish, Olympic Gold Medalist Peter Kennaugh and former World Road Championship Medalist, Jonny Bellis. Local restaurant The Abbey provided one of the biggest auction items of the night, exclusive use of the restaurant for 100 guests and a hog roast meal.
The ICT Auction Dinner Dance was a great success and children from The Buchan will benefit from an upgraded ICT Suite when they return to school after the summer holidays. Alan Macnair, The Buchan’s IT coordinator, said: “We are so grateful to our generous sponsors, raffle/auction donors and all the parents, Buchan friends and staff who took part in the evening. The enthusiasm and drive to help raise money for our ICT Suite was heartwarming and will have a very positive impact on Buchan pupils. We will have a much more interactive ICT suite with digital displays, the facility to project any child’s work centrally, easier communication between pupils using the same technology, and the facility to continue electronic school work at home. This is only achievable with machines capable of running more CPU hungry software and will bring our IT more in line with current technologies.”
Nicole Perry Ellis, chairperson of FAB, explained: “We wanted to bring The Buchan community together with local businesses who have been so supportive and generous, and promote the importance of acquiring ICT skills for all children. The money raised will greatly benefit the children and help develop their ICT skills in this fast-moving, technology-driven world. We would like to thank our wonderful sponsors and each and every business and parent who have so generously donated auction and raffle items.”
