Easyfundraising have paid us the latest contribution generated by our supporters shopping online.
Over £900 has now been paid to the Club! We have exciting plans for how we are going to use this money….
If you are not already using Easyfundraising, it is a great way to generate additional funding to your favourite judo club at no further expense to yourself! Full details of how to sign up and become an Easyfundraiser are here.
When we closed the club in March 2020, a week before the first national lockdown, none of us really envisaged that 10 months later our mats would still be empty.
We were lucky enough to be able to run some sessions outdoors over the summer, but our return to indoor training has been knocked back – first from November 2020 to January 2021, and now indefinitely in the third national lockdown. We remain committed to opening when it is safe to do so.
Like everyone else, we await the lifting of Covid restrictions. Infection rates are falling, but are still high; and hospital admissions and deaths show no signs of abating. Sadly, Covid related deaths have even affected Portsmouth’s judo community.
International judo has been affected, as has been the Olympics. It is probably 50-50 at best if the rescheduled 2020 Tokyo Games will take place this year. GB’s Alice Schlesinger has announced her retirement, missing her last Games, and Nekoda Smythe-Davis has announced her withdrawal from the selection race for Tokyo as she recovers from a serious concussion.
We hope you are taking advantage of the online sessions organised by British Judo. These are FREE to licensed members – another reason to keep your British Judo membership in date. You can book on to these sessions here.
Thank you for your continued support of the Club via Portsmouth Lottery and Easyfundraising. With online shopping our new normal, this is a great way to generate donations to the Club, at no cost to yourself. Funds raised will help us to weather the current pandemic and return stronger when we can get back on the mats, with whatever restrictions may still be in place. Judo, martial arts and other indoor contact sports will be the last to return to normal.
Please remember it is OK not to feel OK! The last year has been extremely testing for everyone. British Judo has published a list of organisations who can offer support if you or members of your family are struggling. Alternatively, you may find suggestions in Dr Rangan Chatterjee’s book ‘Feel Better in 5’ helpful. The Morning and Evening Flows are great stretching and relaxation processes, whilst guidance on daily gratitude list, affirmations and breathing practices may also be of benefit.
Finally, stay safe, look after each other and we look forward to seeing you all back on the mat when it is safe to do so.
A huge thank you to all who have been supporting us through the Easyfundraising platform.
Donations since we first went live have now broken the £500 mark. These have supplemented mat income and supported us with some of the ancillary costs of running the club, as well as bolstering income when mat attendance has been low.
Your continued support will be amazing as we move forward and prepare for a return to judo… costs are likely to remain high but income reduced due to social distancing requirements.
Easyfundraising is FREE to use, participating retailers make a donation to the club when purchases are initiated through the Easyfundraising platform. If you are shopping through a tablet or mobile, there is an equivalent app you can download so that all donations are captured.
New supporters can sign up here. Once you raise your first £5, Easyfundraising will match it, meaning we get £10!
Thanks once again for your support.
Just a quick reminder of a couple of ways that you can help us to raise extra funds for the club.
Use Easyfundraising… it’s quick, free and easy.
Simply register at www.easyfundraising.org.uk and nominate Court Lane Judo Club, or use this link:
https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/courtlanejudoclub/?invite=3H5QVP&referral-campaign=s2s
Using the link above will trigger an additional £5 donation to the Club when your own donation reaches £5.
Every time you shop online, go to Easyfundraising fund and shop from their partners. We get a percentage of the nett price, with no additional cost to you! Online shopping has already £470 in donations for us, from partners such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, John Lewis, Dunelm, Regatta.
Installing the Easyfundraising app on your ‘phone makes it even easier to support the Club on the move!
Buy tickets from the Portsmouth Lottery
Purchasing tickets from the Portsmouth Lottery means we get 50% of every ticket price, with 10% going into a charitable causes grant fund.
To buy a ticket to benefit the club, visit:
https://www.portsmouthlottery.co.uk/support/court-lane-judo-club
Buy a ticket now and you could win a Fitbit and Google Mini, as well as being entered into the weekly draw to win up to £25,000.
Currently we have sold 1,696 tickets raising £848 for the Club.
Why your support matters
There are a number of reasons why we value your support with our fundraising.
1. Most urgently, current numbers and mat fees do not quite cover the cost of hall hire. To give you an idea of costs, the total income from Easyfundraising to date does not cover the cost of one month’s hall hire.
2. To support the coaches. The club coaches continue to be unpaid, and fund their own coach development and revalidation.
3. Our mats are getting old. The 2×1 metre mats were purchased more than twenty years ago. The 1×1 metre mats were second hand from the 2002 Commonwealth Games. Whilst none need replacing yet, they are showing signs of wear and tear through constant handling. It would be prudent to start building up a mat replacement fund. At the last estimate, it would cost circa £5,000 to replace the current mats.
4. Ultimately, to have our own dojo (training hall), and be masters of our own destiny.
As always, thank you for your continued support.
Thank you to everyone who has signed up to and used Easyfundraising to support the Club.
Your free to you donations have to date exceeded over £450.
This has helped us massively over the lean times with low numbers, as numbers grow we hope to start channelling these funds towards a mat replacement programme.
Full details of how to sign up to use Easyfundraising can be found on our fundraising page.
Thank you once again for your support.
Easyfundraising update! Secret Escapes, Uber Eats, Hollister, goHenry, Stansted Express, Chiltern Railways and many more have all joined easyfundraising recently and will donate to Court Lane Judo Club at NO EXTRA COST to you when you shop with them! This is FREE money for us and it makes all the difference!
So please visit http://efraising.org/oOoE4uGERE and raise free donations for us when you shop!
We apologise for using the C-word … but signing up to and using www.easyfundraising.org.uk each time you shop on line, could make a massive difference to us!
Supporters have already raised over £430 for us by shopping online at Amazon, Tesco, Millets, Asos, Uswitch…
Full details of how you can support the Club via easyfundraising and the Portsmouth Lottery be found on our supporters’ pages.
