Oasis Takes Pride!

We were honoured to be able to attend Margate Pride on the 12th August, at Dreamland. Our team of wonderful volunteers were really generous in giving their time to help us raise awareness of the work that we do, as well as getting lots of feedback from people attending Pride about how we can continue to deliver the best service possible to our local communities. We even got to march in the Pride Parade, with our beautiful banner that our Support Group designed, which was a real highlight of the day!

One of our volunteers, Ellen Peet, has written a report about her experience- if you want to find out more about our time at Pride, read on!

The Serenaders Ladies Choir

On Sat 15th July we attended and gave a talk at the Serenaders Ladies Choir charity concert in Palm Bay. Not only was it a really enjoyable evening, but we also received donations from the group totalling £607, for which we are truly grateful.

Our thanks go to the Choir and to organiser Janice Regan and for all their support.

Broadstairs Rotary Club Donation

Our thanks go to the Rotary Club of Broadstairs for this fantastic donation of therapy equipment to use with the young people we work with. As well as a great selection of art and craft supplies, and carrying crates for our therapists, our young people now also have "Tangles", a therapeutic fidget-toy that helps them to deal with difficult emotions and anxiety.

Oasis Ball Fundraiser Success!

An evening of glitz and glamour held at The Pavilion on the Sands in Broadstairs has raised £10,000 for Oasis Domestic Abuse Service.  Over 120 guests enjoyed a complimentary drink on the Pavilion’s veranda, which boasts one of the best views in Thanet, courtesy of event sponsors Artemis Recruitment, followed by a 3 course meal in the ballroom.

The charity auction, called by the inimitable Frank Thorley, included lunch for 4 at London’s impressive SKY Garden which went for over £400 and a unique Yachting Experience donated by local businessman Peter Curtis which fetched over £900. All funds raised by the auction and raffle were then doubled by match-funding sponsors Santander whose staff came along to help on the night.

Oasis Fundraising Manager Loukia Michael said, ‘It was an incredible evening which simply would not have been possible without the hard work and support of Kim and Frank Thorley who have supported Oasis since we first opened our doors to those affected by domestic abuse, and who have helped us over the years to keep many women and children safe from serious harm’.

Birchington-based Thanetian Weddings and Events gave their time to personally decorate the room which looked magnificent dressed in Oasis colours and chandelier style table decor. Guests danced into the early hours to music by local band Co Co.

Dee Murphy from Oasis said, ‘it was wonderful to see so many local businesses come together to support The Oasis Ball. I would like to thank our generous sponsors: Thorley Taverns, Santander, Thanetian Weddings and Events and Artemis Recruitment as well as the firms and individuals who kindly donated to the auction and raffle, thank you!’

Oasis Celebrates Eid

Yesterday's support group was amazing. We started the morning with a taster session of meditation, after finding a safe quite space the group really enjoyed it and want the instructor to come back regularly!! After the meditation we got into the kitchen, preparing for our Eid celebration.

The support group, our refuge residents and staff got together in the dining room. One of our peer mentors brought her famous pakoras, we had biryani, samosas, quiches, salads, Gambian curries and mashed potatoes. As you can see we put on quite the spread. Three members of the support group dressed in their traditional dress the colours in their clothes were amazing.  One member of the group completed henna on everyone that wanted it done.

Every child was given a small bag of new coins as it is the tradition that all children receive new coins at Eid.

Oasis celebrates six religious festivals to celebrate in the refuge each year. It's a way to learn about different cultures, but more importantly, it's really fun and we get to share things that are important to us.

We are already looking forward to Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year in September.

Golf Day Hole Sponsors - Hall of Fame

We'd like to thank our Golf Day 2017 event sponsors and 18 hole sponsors, who helped make this event a great success.

Our sincere thanks goes to event sponsors: Barclays Bank, Spurling Cannon, Lanes Printers and our Hole Sponsors: Standfast, Finns, Elgate, TW Services, Blaze Signs, Thorley Taverns, Saunders Electrical, Euromarine, TW Reco Pro, Grand Garage, Inspire People, Weston Holdings, Keel Toys, Highway Services, Business Computing Solutions, Cooke & Co. and Drinks Warehouse.

We look forward to seeing you next year!

East Kent College Community Day

Our warmest thanks go to all the students at East Kent College who created these stunning pamper hampers for the women and children in our Refuge as part of their Community Day. So much thought and effort has been put into each and every one. We're truly grateful for all your support - it means a lot to know that people care.

Dee Murphy with staff from East Kent College

Fundraising Success on the Fairways!

The Oasis Golf Day at North Foreland Golf Club on Friday 28th April proved to be a great success raising over £6,000 for the charity. 

The sun shone on the over 40 players who took to the course. Amongst them were Kent County Cricket stars Mitch Claydon and James Harris who joined forces with 2 lucky local teams on the day.

Play commenced with a shotgun start at 12:30. On course, players were treated to whiskey and water, served by volunteers from event sponsor Spurling Cannon on the 10th Tee while a Mini convertible donated by Barretts Group of Canterbury advertising auction prize 'Win a Mini for the weekend' was on display on the 18th Tee. 

Taking first placewas Club Chairman, Keith Rumblo's team; 'Rumblo's Ramblers' with a score of 95 points with the Boys & Maughan Team coming not far behind in 2nd with 91 points. David Rundle hit Nearest the Pin on the 7th hole and Clive Cain was Nearest the Line on the 10th. All winners received golfing prizes generously arranged by club professional Darren Parris and sponsored by Lanes Printers of Broadstairs. 

Dee Murphy, Community Fundraiser at Oasis said 'We are absolutely delighted with how well our first Golf Day went. We are so grateful for the fantastic support received from the local golfing and business communities as well as the excellent hospitality and warm welcome from the club, which all helped make the day a great success. We're already putting plans in place for next year!'

In the evening, guests were treated to a 2 coursemeal, which was followed by an entertaining charity auction expertly run by Club Chairman Keith Rumblo and vice Chairman Mike Bastow. All of the funds raised through the auction and raffle were generously matched by Barclays Bank helping to boost the charity pot and raise extra, valuable funds for those affected by Domestic Abuse.

After the success of the Golf we are now looking forward to our next event which is The Oasis Ball taking place at The Pavillion in Broadstairs on Friday 23rd June. Tickets for this event are £35 per head and can be purchased here: www.oasisdaservice.org/oasis-events/oasisball or by calling the Fundraising team on: 07753 447237.

Inner Wheel Silent Auction

Dee Murphy with Susan Midgley, President of Margate Inner Wheel

Thank you to the Inner Wheel of Margate for organising a fabulous silent auction event at Northdown House and raising over £200 for Oasis. The evening was a great success with everything from pamper vouchers to car washing kits up for grabs. Guests included members of Inner Wheel groups from across Thanet, as well as friends of members. Dee Murphy, Oasis Community Fundraiser, who was delighted to attend said ‘Oasis was the charity of choice of the late Mrs Lyn Downs one of our treasured supporters and a member of the Inner Wheel. The event was part of a number of fundraising events set up in her name for which we are tremendously grateful’

From Desk to Dirt

Oasis Community Fundraiser, Dee Murphy, has signed up for a very muddy challenge having agreed to take part in 'The Major', a military style assault course taking place at Eridge Park in Tunbridge Wells on Saturday 25th March. Dee will have just 6 weeks to get ready for this challenge and has kick started her training by joining a local boot camp group as well as doing weekly runs. On the day she will have to run a 10 - 12km course whilst taking on 18 obstacles, spurred on by The Major's troop of elite soldiers.

Dee is calling on Oasis supporters and members of the public to join her in this challenge. 'There's still time to sign up and you don't have to do the full 10km route, there is an option to do a 5km course also, making this an accesible challenge for everybody'.

For more information and to sign up go to: http://www.oasisdaservice.org/oasis-events/majorseries

To support Oasis and sponsor Dee in her epic challenge go to: https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/majorlymuddy

Three cheers for the 'Friends of Oasis'!

Friends of Oasis present a cheque to Oasis

A newly-formed fundraising committee has celebrated the success of its first year by presenting local charity Oasis Domestic Abuse Service with a cheque for £3,831.

The Friends of Oasis is a committee of local volunteers, formed in 2015 with the objective of hosting special events to raise funds so that the charity can offer a range of services to the families it supports.

The Friends’ most recent event was a lunch at the new Yarrow Hotel at which 120 people enjoyed a meal prepared by students at the award-winning East Kent College and which raised £1,250 for the charity.

Committee chair Maggie Elliott, also a trustee of the charity, said, 'we would like to thank the Yarrow for all the help and support organising this event and also for their generous raffle prize'

Loukia Michael, Fundraising Manager for Oasis said, ‘The Friends of Oasis are a fantastic group of women who have worked so hard this year with incredible results. We work with so many traumatised children at Oasis for whom we receive no government funding. It is thanks to the Friends that we are able to offer them the support that they need at such a vulnerable time in their lives’.

The group are currently planning for the year ahead and have already re-booked The Yarrow for a repeat event on Tuesday 10th October 2017

The Committee's next fundraising activity will be a stall for Oasis on Saturday 3rd December at St Andrew’s Church Fete in Reading Street selling ‘all things sparkly’.

'A quilt is a hug you can keep' - Project Linus

Dee Murphy, Community Fundraiser at Oasis, meets some of the Volunteers at Project Linus

It was a pleasure to meet the team at Project Linus who make beautiful, hand crafted quilts for the children in the Refuge. The women and children who come to stay with us will very often need to leave their homes quickly, leaving everything behind, arriving at the Refuge with very little. The quilts donated by Project Linus are given to the children as a comfort and are theirs to keep when they eventually move on into their more permanent homes.

Dee Murphy, Community Fundraiser at Oasis said "It was great to meet the volunteers behind the quilts that are so kindly gifted to us. So much love and care goes into their making and the sense of security, warmth and comfort they provide is immeasurable. Thank you to all the volunteers at Project Linus for these much loved and beautiful donations".

Things are really heating up

We're getting closer and closer to the fantastic Postcard Auction - the Volunteers are prepped and the Pimms is waiting to be poured for the launch party.  The gallery will be open from 27th August to 2nd September 11am-4pm, come along to the Harbour Arm to get a good look at the art and soak up a bit of the Margate sun.

Auction Day is Saturday 3rd September but if you can't make it on the day bidding slips will be available throughout exhibition week. Alternatively email Claire.fenley@oasisdaservice.org with the Lot number and the amount you wish to bid.

The catalogue has just been released so you can get a sneak peek of all the art and find the one (or more!) for you!