Santa brings joy to Exeter - by bus
Santa set a new ‘gold standard’ in travel when he arrived in Exeter on a luxury bus where he encouraged shoppers to donate and decorate themselves for charity!
Teaming up with Exeter Leukaemia Fund (ELF), Stagecoach South West brought Santa to Princesshay shopping centre on Friday December 11 on one of the company’s new Gold buses, which feature leather seats, extra legroom, free Wi-Fi and USB ports.
It was all in aid of ELF’s EARS 4 ELF day, which helps raise awareness and funds to help families across Devon affected by blood cancers and blood disorders. Shopper’s generous donations enabled the charity to raise £347.
Gold Route 57 driver, Clint Woodman, dressed up as Santa for the event. He spent the day in Bedford Square, meeting children and shoppers and, for a donation to the local charity, encouraged people to make use of the festive ‘Decoration Station’ to create their very own elf ears.
Clint said: “It was great to be able to spend the day in Princesshay dressed up as Santa. It’s the best feeling when I see people’s faces light up and it just help to spread some festive cheer. It’s great that we managed to raise a significant amount of money for ELF as well.”
People could take their very own #Elfyselfy and post it on Twitter. Stagecoach staff joined ELF volunteers to support the fundraising initiative. Special guest former Exeter Chiefs player Chris Bentley also attended the event to help spread the Christmas spirit.
Clint will continue to don his Santa suit during his December driving shifts, fundraising for ELF and carrying on what has become a popular annual tradition with customers on the 57 route. Clint commented “I absolutely love dressing up as Santa – it puts a smile on the faces of customers both old and young. It was great to spend the day in Princesshay and see the smiles on everyone’s faces. As a team, we raised a considerable amount for an amazing local charity which is fantastic.”
Alison Upton, Fundraiser at ELF, said: “ELF and the volunteers from Michelmores had a really fun day accompanying Santa on the Gold bus. I hope that the shoppers enjoyed our singing! Thank you so much to Stagecoach and Santa for enabling ELF to raise so much money. It will make a real difference to families affected by blood cancers and blood disorders in Exeter.”
Wayne Pearce, Princesshay Centre Director, said: “We were pleased to be able to host the Santa on the bus event in Princesshay and were very happy to support both ELF and Stagecoach. We felt that the event was a great success and really loved seeing people get into the festive spirit and donating to ELF, a very worthy charity.”
