Sponsored by
£15,000 to meet Man United stars
DRINKS company boss Steve Perez will be raising a glass to The Star when he travels to Italy in March to meet the Manchester United stars.
Steve, who owns Chesterfield drinks firm Global Brands which makes the alcopop Vodka Kick, bid a mammoth 15,000 in The Star's tsunami appeal auction last night for a once-in-a-lifetime trip.
He will fly to Italy, meet the Man Utd stars at a team training session, and enjoy a meal with the players at their hotel after watching the Champions League game against AC Milan at the San Siro stadium.
But Steve, who set up his company in Clay Cross in 1997 and was named Entrepreneur of the Year in 2002, said the real prize was the knowledge he had helped raise money for the tsunami victims.
He said: "I think this evening is a great, fun evening but it has a very serious side. So many people have died in this disaster. This was the biggest prize and I would not have cared if the bidding had carried on, I would have kept going."
Steve, whose firm turns over almost 70 million a year, even beat two bidders from Sweden and Germany who had phoned through to the prestige event at Baldwin's Omega in Nether Edge to try to bag the hugely popular prize.
Just hours before the event began bids had flooded in from across the globe with at least 130 bids for the Manchester United trip from countries including France, Norway, and South Africa.
Richard Lamb, chairman of motor group Gordon Lamb, snapped up a luxury pad in Barbados – next door to Cliff Richard's home – for a week for 5,000.
He said: "I wanted to help this cause and I went to Barbados about five years ago and thought it would be nice to go again. I think The Star's campaign has been excellent and when I was told about this event I said I'd take a table for 10."
Generous Mark Holland, of property company Land Task, bid 6,500 for a helicopter trip and round of golf in Scotland – but later gave the prize back to the previous bidder.
"I have paid for the trip but because I gave it back to the previous bidder, there is now 12,500 for charity. It's a great cause and that's why I did it."
Russell Sharp of The Crunch fruit shop, and wife Kirsty from estate agent Blundells, paid 1,600 for a painting by local artist Peter Coulthard while three separate shooting day events raised over 7,000.
Guy Elliff of Century Motors, Hillsborough, paid 1,000 for tickets to a rugby international match in Scotland while a white gold diamond necklace went for 2,200.
The auction saw guests dig deep to donate as much as possible for The Star's campaign which aims to rebuild the devastated village of Sorake Beach, home to former Sheffield woman Jo-Anne Wau.
Jo-Anne, aged 27, of Dronfield Woodhouse, discovered the tiny community, on the south west corner of the island of Nias, while travelling around Indonesia.
The Boxing Day tsunami destroyed about 20 of the 76 houses and washed away livestock and the village's rice crop.
The auction was one of the main features of the event which will donate the rest of funds raised to the international tsunami appeal.
The sell-out night featured food from around the world and performances from three top bands – the Acoustic Angels, Dave Berry and the Cruisers and The Sharp Cuts.
T-shirts, provided by Volkswagen, were snapped up by every guest for 10 each, raising 2,640, while funds were further topped up by guests who had lost out on bids at the auction donating their own cash.
Venue owner David Baldwin hailed the evening a staggering success, telling guests: "This has been the greatest night ever held at Baldwin's Omega."
Mr Baldwin donated all the food for the evening free of charge.
Garry Scotting, owner of Volkswagen retailer Gilders, one of the organisers, said: "It has been absolutely fantastic. We could have sold another 264 tickets – we have even had a waiting list."
Auctioneer on the night, Sheffield businessman Rob Brady, praised the people of Sheffield for the spectacular event.
He said: "This has shown the people of Sheffield are so generous. I think this is a record amount of money raised in Sheffield on one night. There has never been anything like this before – it's been absolutely historic."
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Sheffield
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: East
