Decade of cake baking helps ‘Thrifty Ladies’ raise thousands for charities in Lancaster and beyond
A group of ‘Thrifty Ladies’ in Silverdale are celebrating a decade of baking cakes for charity and raising thousands of pounds in the process.
The Thrifty Ladies of Silverdale Village Institute have the recipe for fundraising success and by the end of this year will have donated a total of £90,000 to local, national and international charities since 2016.
Their tenth anniversary celebration takes place on November 6 in the Institute at Spring Bank between 10am and noon, and as well as a selection of cakes to buy, there will be free tea and coffee and other attractions.
Parking is available on the adjacent field.
“We all enjoy being in a friendly group and our aim in life is just to make money for charity,” said Thrifty Lady Val Westhead.
She’s one of several in the group who are in their eighties and most of the others are in their seventies yet every week, six of them in turn volunteer to bake in their own homes without taking a penny for the costs involved.
The group, which now has 35 members and three Thrifty Men – who put the tables out in the institute – was founded by Ruth Redman, who’s still a patron.
Originally, it was based at the former Leeds Children’s Holiday Camp in Silverdale as a fundraiser for the children.
What started as a small event, raising £40 in two hours, is now so popular that it can make £200 in the same time and some of their special ‘Big One’ events, which also include a raffle and tombola, can raise £1,000 in just two hours.
The Thrifty Ladies moved to Silverdale Institute 10 years ago and every Friday morning since, apart from during the festive season, they can welcome up to 50 people to enjoy a selection of cakes, fruit breads or scones.
There’s bric a brac, books and some secondhand clothes to buy too.
Last year, 23 charities benefited from the Thrifty Ladies fundraising and among those recipients have been St John’s Hospice, Morecambe Food Bank and Macmillan Cancer Support.
Money has also been donated to disaster funds in Turkey, Syria and most recently Nepal.
As Silverdale Institute doesn’t charge a hire fee for their events, the group have also donated money towards a new kitchen there and new furniture.