THE Rotary Club of Ivybridge has spearheaded a fundraising campaign that generated nearly £17,000 for the forgotten victims of the Nepal earthquake.

A series of major tremors and aftershocks in April killed 9,200 people in the Himalayan nation, leaving thousands more injured.

And although the eye of the world’s media has long since moved on to new catastrophes, some people have continued doing what they can to help.

Ivybridge rotarians collected money for charity ShelterBox at Tesco, Lee Mill in the immediate aftermath of the disaster. With personal donations from members, and collections from several local businesses, they raised an initial total of over £2,200 within a week.

Then, at the instigation of rotarian Dr Paul Fletcher, staff at out-of-hours GP service Devon Doctors got involved. They agreed to donate their own wages from entire shifts, and chief executive Chris Wright and Devon Doctors’ board agreed to match the donations.

As a result, between shift payments, match funding and collections, the two organisations raised a grand total of £16,802.

ShelterBox’s Rotary liaison officer David Glover said: ‘That is an amazing total, and shows a really generous joint effort between Ivybridge Rotary and Devon Doctors.

‘I was very pleased to give a presentation to many of the fundraisers, because ShelterBox’s response to Nepal is turning out to be one of our most complex and longest-running. The conditions could hardly be more challenging – poor weather, inaccessible villages, extreme damage, altitude sickness, even fuel shortages.

‘But the need is still there, so ShelterBox is still there. And fundraising like this sends a clear message to these mountain villagers that they have not been abandoned.’

Dr Fletcher, who works for Devon Doctors said: ‘Although the series of earthquakes which created such devastation are no longer seen to be newsworthy, the disastrous impact they have had on the lives of the people has far from gone away. Their homes have been destroyed and their main sources of income are no longer there to help them to an early recovery.’

‘My friends at Ivybridge Rotary Club and I were keen to help, and I’m delighted that we’ve been able to raise so much for people who never ask for, or expect, foreign aid. It goes without saying, I am extremely grateful to all those individuals who donated time and money to this cause, while the extraordinary generosity of Devon Doctors’ chief executive Chris Wright and his board of directors should also be applauded.’

Chris Wright added: ‘Devon Doctors is a social enterprise and, as such, is committed to putting people before profit, and we are delighted to have been able to help Paul and his colleagues at Ivybridge Rotary Club raise cash for such a deserving cause.

‘ShelterBox does lots of fantastic work across the globe and I’m proud that Devon Doctors has been able to make a small contribution to its efforts to support the people of Nepal as they continue to rebuild their country.’