Deputy Mayor Diaries: Reading Lions Fun Day

My final appointment this weekend was a visit to the Reading Lions Fun Day at Prospect Park.  This was the end of a fun packed day for them.

In the morning they held a fundraising Dads and Lads Fun Run to raise money for their prostate cancer testing programme.  In February this year they paid for around 350 men to have blood tests to check for prostate cancer.  If you were OK you got a green letter, if you need a bit of further investigation you got an amber letter and if you needed a urgent check, a red letter.  Several red letters were sent after this session and lives saved!  What a great thing to do.

I was also told about their message in a bottle scheme.  Basically they provide a bottle, some documents and stickers.  You fill in the document with anything a healthcare provider would need.  You pop it in the bottle in the fridge with a sticker on the fridge and your front door alerting people that you have a 'message in a bottle'.  If a paramedic attended they would see these stickers and be provided with potentially life saving informaiton they can use straight away.  Simple but so very effective!

Alongside the usual fair stalls selling food, bouncy castles and popcorn vendors ManiChem were providing free diabetes tests.  Being a curious sort I got tested. Another great service.

It was so interesting to hear about the things the Lions Club of Reading do in the community.  Everyone was clearly having a great time at the fun day and the sun was (mostly) shining.  I look forward to meeting up with the Lions during my year as Deputy Mayor.

The Army Cadets provided music!

With my excellent host, David Hitchins