Chris Dennis, Director of Caerphilly-based GKR Maintenance and Building Co. Ltd, is taking part in the London Triathlon this August to raise money for the voluntary organisation, Street Football Wales (SFW).
SFW is a voluntary organisation inSouth Wales, which arranges football matches for people experiencing social exclusion, through homelessness and long-term unemployment. The games help engage individuals and develop valuable skills such as, timekeeping and social interaction. Chris aims to raise as much money as possible for SFW whilst promoting awareness of the scheme, which has long been overlooked and receives virtually nothing in the form of funding, compared with its English equivalent charity, which receives over £1milliom a year.
After fracturing a bone in his knee playing football in February, Chris has only recently been able to resume his intense training regime for the London Triathlon. The event is being held on 8th August and combines a 1500m swim, 40k cycle and 10km run around centralLondon, with parts of the course trialing the route to be used in the 2012 Olympics.
Chris commented “I am looking forward to competing in the London Triathlon, which is one of the most popular and well known triathlons in theUK. I first became aware of SFW having seen them on Sport Wales in 2009. The organisation inspired me to combine my love of football and competing in triathlons to raise money for a worthwhile cause, which I believe has been overlooked for far too long. With the ongoing battle that the homeless face in terms of stereotyping and prejudice, it’s good to be able to give back to this part of the community both personally and on a company level.”
Keri Harris of Street Football Wales, said: “Chris Dennis has already provided SFW with invaluable support by fundraising through his company GKR Maintenance and Building Co. As a voluntary group, we rely on the goodwill of our supporters to enable us to deliver this highly valued service to over 100 homeless and socially excluded people. Chris has shown a great understanding of the barriers faced by our participants and his fundraising activities achieve more than monetary gain for SFW – through these achievements, Chris is helping us to raise awareness of social exclusion and to challenge the ever present stigma associated with homelessness. We feel fortunate to have a sponsor such as Chris supporting what we do.”
To donate to the cause people can either email Chris Dennis cdennis@gkrmaintenance.co.uk or go directly to Street Football Wales at streetfootballwales@hotmail.co.uk