Select donates special 'sleigh' to Santa this Christmas

SANTA and his elves will begin a magical trip across Woodley, Reading's largest suburb, raising vital money for local causes and aided by a very special ‘sleigh’.

The Woodley & Earley Lions Club’s Christmas sleigh pull has been a festive favourite in Woodley for more than three decades.

This year’s winter extravaganza begins on Monday 27th November on Selsdon Avenue, Woodley.

And for the second year running, Father Christmas’s sleigh will be pulled by a pick-up donated by Select Van Leasing - the commercial vehicle arm of local firm Select Car Leasing - with the vehicle being christened ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Ford Ranger’!

_{Above, left to right: John Bennison, Paul Norman, Santa (close friends with Philip Barry), Mike Tarling, Ian Elston}

Members of the Woodley & Earley Lions Club - a registered charity and network of like-minded volunteers who have banded together to support the local community - gathered at Select Car Leasing’s Reading HQ to take delivery of the Ford Ranger Wildtrak pick-up, which will tour the town right up until the day before Christmas Eve.

Volunteers will be armed with collection tins, with every penny raised going to the food banks of Woodley and Earley, the Woodley Lunch Bunch - which delivers free packed lunches to school children during the holidays - and the Lions’ locally-supported charities.

The Club’s Christmas Co-ordinator Philip Barry said: “Every penny that we raise during the Christmas sleigh pull goes to local causes - and that’s really important to us. We want everyone that donates to know that their money really will be put to good use in their local community. We are also extremely grateful to Select Car Leasing for its continued support of the Club, as the loan of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Ford Ranger is absolutely vital for us. Santa’s sleigh is heavy, especially when it’s loaded with presents, and Santa’s love of mince pies only adds to the heft! Having a tow-vehicle like the Ranger to rely on is extremely reassuring.”

The Sleigh pull ends on December 23rd with a visit to the Woodley Shopping Precinct.

Mark Tongue, Director and co-founder of Select Car Leasing, says: “We’re thoroughly delighted to be supporting the Woodley & Earley Lions Club again in 2023, as it’s an amazing charity driven by fantastic volunteers, and which is making a real difference in the local area. This friendship forms another essential part of the local community work we are committed to as a business, which includes supplying vehicles to Sue Ryder nurses and our work with Reading Football Club’s Community Trust, as well as initiatives like giving away free tickets to youngsters to watch Reading F.C, and donating soccer kits to grassroots players. We hope Rudolph the Red-Nosed Ford Ranger helps Santa to put a smile on the faces of all who get to meet him in the coming weeks. And let’s just hope that Santa remembers to put diesel in our Rudolph’s fuel tank, and not carrots…”

_{Above, Select staff with the Woodley & Earley Lions Club}

Incredibly, The Woodley & Earley Lions Club has raised more than £1 million pounds for charity since its inception in 1980 and has collected money for many different organisations, including hospices and special needs schools, as well as supplying a fully-equipped vehicle to Community First Responders.

The Club itself is part of the ‘Lions Clubs International’, a global organisation with more than 1.5 million members spread across more than 200 countries. All Lion members are volunteers who freely give their time to help others.

Visit the Woodley & Earley Lions Club website here to see the full Christmas sleigh pull calendar, with a list of roads being visited by date.

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