Life Fitness Supports Fundraising Efforts of Metropolitan Hotel

The Metropolitan Hotel in Central London is going all out with its fundraising efforts this year.

To mark the hotel’s tenth anniversary, which it celebrated in February, the General Manager, Thomas Orchard, has developed the Anniversary Challenge and has already smashed his £10,000 fundraising target.

One of the main fundraising initiatives was Thomas’ participation in the London Marathon in April. Competing in his first ever marathon, he completed the course in an impressive five hours. Life Fitness is also helping to raise money towards the challenge total by donating a Cross-Trainer, which will be auctioned later in the year and the proceeds added to the fund.
Discussing the marathon, Thomas said: “I’m immensely proud of the achievement. It was an incredible day. A day full of new experiences, a day which proved that the mind can be stronger than the body. A day with so many highlights. A day not to be forgotten.”
He continues: “The donations keep coming in and so far I’ve raised over £22,000 for my chosen charities. The response has been overwhelming and I’m hugely indebted to everyone who has supported me.”

The charities set to benefit from Thomas’ and his hotel’s hard work and generosity are Hospitality Action and the Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) Association. Hospitality Action’s Life Support Programme offers help to all who work or have worked within hospitality in the UK, and provides a safety net for the vulnerable or those that find themselves in crisis.
PSP is a degenerative disease involving the death of selected neurons (nerve cells) in the brain. Over a period of time, this can affect balance, mobility, vision, speech and the ability to swallow. There are currently thought to be 10,000 cases of PSP in the UK and as yet, there is no cure available. The PSP Association provides information and support to afflicted families, runs a national telephone counselling service for patients and their carers, operates local support groups around the country, sponsors research into the disease and works to raise awareness of the condition amongst the general public and the medical profession.

Dylan Fairclough, Channel Sales Manager for Life Fitness, says: “These are both very worthy causes, which will benefit the lives of people all over the world. Life Fitness is delighted to be able to support this valuable initiative and wishes Tom and everyone else at the hotel continued success in their aim to raise such a fantastic amount for charity.”
Due to his fundraising success to date, Thomas has decided to add the 'Help a London Child' charity to his list for the Anniversary Challenge and hopes to raise a further £8,000 to reach a new target of £30,000 for the year. As a result, he will be entering the New York Marathon on November 4, 2007 and will also compete in the BUPA Great Capital Run on July 15 as part of his training programme.
The gym at the COMO Shambhala Urban Escape, the spa facility at The Metropolitan Hotel was refurbished in September 2006 with a selection of Life Fitness cardiovascular and resistance machines.

 

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