The St George’s Day lunch at The Spa Hotel had to be cancelled during the Covid-19 pandemic, but it returned last Friday (April 22).
Organised by a group of Tunbridge Wells businessmen known as The Exiles, the lunch and charity auction in aid of the Pickering Cancer Drop-in Centre in Monson Road, was attended by nearly 180 guests, all eager to support the good cause.
A charity auction saw a range of items up for grabs, including Premiership football tickets, meals out and spa days.
While organisers say the final amount raised, including various raffles and cash donations looks set to have raised around £30,600 including Gift Aid.
Co-founder of Pickering, which offers emotional support to people who have cancer and their families, Polly Taylor, said: “There were 176 wonderful, wonderful, lovely huggable people there on Friday.
“The whole event for me was stand-out. When I stood up to do my presentation and looked out over that room and saw all those smiling faces… it was worth waiting two and a half years for.”
Joining the guests at the luncheon was auctioneer and stand-up comedian, Asger Brown, who hosted the event, as well as comedy music trio ‘The Singing Waiters’.
Co-founder of Pickering – Polly Taylor
