Saint George’s Day Eccentricity Marks Start Of Asparagus Season With Truly British Style Asparagus Run
Saint George’s Day Eccentricity Marks Start Of Asparagus Season With Truly British Style Asparagus Run
Date: 23rd April 2016
Time: 8.00am – 3pm
8am – The Fleece Inn, Bretforton, Worcestershire WR11 7JT
Country Pub Of The Year 2016 and The National Trust’s 15th century pub is the venue for the first leg of the Great Asparagus Run. Morris and Molly Dancers, Gus The Asparagus Man, the fortune-telling asparamancer, Eddie Grundy, male and female Morris Dancers and a cross-dressing Asparafairy celebrate the first-cut round of asparagus.
A convoy of vintage cars including three Morgans several classic Bentleys and Rolls Royces, Truckfest Trucks then take the asparagus round to Evesham complete with a police escort akin to what the Royal Family would get.
10am – The Abbey Bell Tower, Evesham WR11 4BG
Avonbank Brass Band will strike up some patriotic tunes to welcome the initial leg of the run. A village fete, free for everyone, will be the next celebratory leg of the run. Rodrigo Asparaguy, the Alpine All Male Winter Zumba Championships 2014 will lead a mass asparazumba. Stalls selling everything you can eat and drink themed to asparagus will dot Abbey Green. Three different folk singers will entertain the crowds too.
2pm – Acorns Children’s Hospice, 350 Bath Road, Worcester, WR5 3EZ
The final destination, at which point the asparagus will be handed over to raise money for Acorns Children’s Hospice which has been snapped up the Cotswold Inns. As well as Gus, the fairy and the dancers, balloon modelers and face painters will make it a carnival atmosphere for the children and their families. Children able to eat asparagus will be served up an asparagus feast.
Acorns Children’s Hospice offers a network of specialist palliative care for life limited and life threatened children and young people.
Care is tailored to the individual needs of each child and their family and includes short breaks, emergency and end of life care. A multi-disciplinary team, including registered children’s nurses, health care assistants and physiotherapists, provide care on a one-to-one basis and for families, a dedicated family worker is on hand 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The charity is currently supporting over 240 children and more than 300 families at Acorns for the Three Counties, based in Worcester and this includes families from across Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.
It costs Acorns more than £9 million every year to continue providing its services and it relies on fundraising and the generosity of the local community for the majority of this amount.
Mandie Fitzgerald, Community Fundraising Manager for Acorns, said: “It’s an absolute honour to have been chosen as the final recipient of the famous round of asparagus and the occasion really underlines our connection to the local community.
“The awareness this event brings and the money raised is absolutely critical in helping us to provide the care and support that’s so vital to children and their families across the county and beyond.”
For more information on the work of Acorns, please visit www.acorns.org.uk
Contact: In advance and on the day Sara Stewart on 07833 467774 and 01684 893347 or email sara@madasamarchhare.com