THE Rotary Club of Ivybridge is offering its thanks to everyone that helped Santa and his sleigh in the run up to Christmas, particularly Ivybridge Young Farmers.

Each year club members tour the town collecting money door to door for charity.

And despite inclement weather at the tail end of 2015, rotarians raised a total of £5,275.

The funds will be split between club president Adrian D’Cunha’s chosen charities for this year: Jeremiah’s Journey, an organisation close to his heart that supports bereaved children, and the Devon Air Ambulance, as well as other local causes.

Adrian said: ‘This year was a particularly wet Christmas to walk the streets of Ivybridge for 10 long evenings door to door, however the support and generosity of our local community was, at times, humbling.

‘The Rotary Club of Ivybridge would like to thank everyone who helped its fundraising pre-Christmas visits with Santa and his helpers around the area, including Glanvilles Mill and Tesco Lee Mill.

‘With the age of the Ivybridge rotarians getting increasingly older, and a lot being unable to complete the street collections - something that has been running for 35 years - this year we called upon the help of Ivybridge Young Farmers Association.

‘They came out and supported us in their droves and added to the festive spirit. It also highlighted the many fundraising activities they are involved in throughout the year. A truly fantastic group of young people.’

The festive fundraising total included £206 raised one Friday evening by Ermington Primary School, who borrowed the rotary sleigh and took it out into the village to raise funds for the school.

If you would like to get involved with Rotary or find out more, please contact Adrian D’Cunha at [email protected], or find the Ivybridge club on Facebook.