Devon family provides driving force for charity
A mid Devon family has raised more than £150 for FORCE by taking part in the first Cannonball Cornwall car rally.
Domenic Meffe from Tiverton drove his MG ZR with dad Stephen and sister Jessica navigating their way around 10 checkpoints across the Duchy, taking in some of Cornwall’s best known landmarks and towns.
The challenge was not about speed but how clever the teams could be in picking the best route to get their cards stamped at each checkpoint.
“We soon realised it was no good listening to the sat nav!” said Stephen, from Hemyock.
More than 130 cars lined up for the start at Cornish Market World in St Austell and Team Meffe successfully reached the finish at Wendron Cricket Club with 310 miles of the county’s roads covered.
They enjoyed it so much that they’re keen to sign up for the next one there may be a Christmas run.
“Hopefully we’ll get a bit more time to raise money for FORCE with the next one,” said Stephen. “The car passed its MOT only a week before the event and that didn’t give us much of a chance to get sponsorship.”
The family are long-time supporters of FORCE and have used the services provided by the Exeter based charity.
FORCE offers free support to anyone locally affected by cancer and provides help and advice at Tiverton Hospital every Thursday afternoon.
Stephen lost both parents – dad Domenico and mum Jean to cancer. There were collections for FORCE at both their funerals and Stephen’s sister, Sue White, hosted a breakfast event in Uffculme that raised £900.
FORCE Community Fundraiser Naomi Cole said: “It was great to hear that Domenic, Jessica and Stephen had so much fun taking on the Cannonball Cornwall car rally, despite winding country lanes and at times unhelpful sat nav instructions. We really appreciate all of the support that the family has shown FORCE over the years and thank you very much also to everyone who sponsored them.”
