A CHRISTMAS cat helped a charity appeal raise almost £2,000 over three days.
Members of Easthampstead Rotary Club welcomed mascot Kinder The Kindly Cat for their festive collection, which was held in three different supermarkets in the run-up to December 25.
The group, which meets on Monday evenings at Coppid Beech Hotel in Binfield, said that shoppers who were otherwise rushing to complete their pre-Christmas food shop paused to give generously to the volunteers collecting for local and international charities.
Almost £2,000 was donated over the three days, of which more than £1,000 as given at the last Tesco collection on Saturday, December 23 when Kinder entertained the children, and the mums and dads enjoyed carols sung by a local church choir.
The supermarkets taking part were the Waitrose store in Rectory Road and Tesco Superstore in Warfield.
And those shoppers who did have time to stop and chat rather than be caught up in the festive rush were able to discover the support given by members of the Easthampstead Rotary group and the work being carried out over Christmas and throughout the year by volunteers helping the homeless, the poor, and the disadvantaged children of Wokingham and Bracknell.
Easthampstead Rotary member Rob Hughes said: “We work with organisations providing support to the elderly and the isolated, and to young people with special needs.
“We also help all young people in and around Bracknell and Wokingham, working with local schools and youth groups.
“And at this busy time of year, thanks and good wishes also to the managers and staff at Tesco and Waitrose … oh and, of course to Kinder the cat.”
For more on Rotary, log on to www.easthampsteadrotary.co.uk