After a hugely successful 10-week public trail around the borough, Ashford’s amazing Snowdog and Snowpup sculptures raised a staggering £142,000 on Monday 3 December at the Gala Auction evening.
In a final farewell (following the success of the Farewell Weekend held at the Julie Rose Stadium on December 1 and 2), a glamorous gala auction was held at Ashford International Hotel, with celebrity TV auctioneer and hosts Michael Hogben and Alison Chapman at the helm as local businesses and residents clamoured for their favourite dog.
A flurry of bids for the popular pooches pushed the grand total raised to over £142,000, which will provide vital funding for Pilgrims Hospices, contributing to the wonderful work they do in the Kent community.
Mr. Doodle’s Doodle Dog sold for the highest bid of the night at £15,000 – with the man himself live doodling a picture that became part of the bidder’s prize. Bagdogg, another popular pooch, sold for £9,000; Snowbrador and 2 Tone Ska Dog both raised £5,200 each; Stripes fetched a fabulous £7,000; Harry Kanine sold for a bid of £6,200 and Noble Ash reached £5,500, just to name a few.
Snowdogs Discover Ashford was brought to the town over 10 weeks between September and November in a joint initiative by Wild in Art, Ashford Borough Council and Pilgrims Hospices, and the residents of Ashford and beyond truly embraced the magical event.
Based on the popular children’s story The Snowman and the Snowdog by Raymond Briggs, the Snowdog trail explored the themes of life, loss, fun, friendship, companionship, strength, and kindness – a story told at Pilgrims Hospices each day.
This has been an amazing journey for us, we’ve had the opportunity to work with so many wonderful people.
Cate Russell – Pilgrims Hospices Chief Executive
The Snowdog sculptures were designed by local artists and sponsored by local businesses, together with 19 Snowpups that have been designed and decorated by 19 local schools. These beautifully crafted giant sculptures have left a lasting impression on thousands of visitors who have ‘pawsed’ to admire them.
Cate Russell, Pilgrims Hospices Chief Executive, said: “This has been an amazing journey for us, we’ve had the opportunity to work with so many wonderful people.
“We are a community charity working hard to support local families; art in any form lifts the spirit and is so life-affirming; the fun and connection of the project really captures what life and love is all about.
“We have made many new friends and have had the opportunity to share the benefits of the work we do, so we know the legacy from this will live on.
“Thank you to everyone who supported us.”
Of the trail’s huge success, Cllr Mike Bennett, Portfolio holder for Culture at Ashford Borough Council, said: “Snowdogs Discover Ashford has been incredibly well received by the people of Ashford and beyond. The success of the trail has far outweighed anything we could have possibly imagined when the idea was initially brought to us. To see the community come together, bonding through art and interpreting the messages conveyed by the trail each week, was a truly wonderful experience and we’re thrilled that they have now raised so much money for such a worthy local cause.”
Each year Pilgrims supports hundreds of local people coping with a life-limiting illness and their families. The charity offers a range of services: from end of life care given on its wards to its Wellbeing and Social Programme supporting people after they are diagnosed, to live well and stay independent.
10th October 2018
Paws to give presents for Pilgrims
A cube devoted to collecting presents for Pilgrims Hospices opened in the County Square, Ashford this week on route of the magical Snowdogs Discover Ashford arts trail.
The collection point located outside Costa Coffee in the shopping centre is being used to collect donations of new items such as toys, games, stocking fillers, beauty products, ladies’ and men’s gifts and chocolates to help the local charity with their fundraising.
The present cube in the County Square shopping centre Ashford
Fans of the very popular art trail can drop a present into the cube whilst visiting theSnowdogs such as Sparky, Zeus, Socks or the County Paws pack who are positioned nearby.
We always welcome new donated items throughout the year
Victoria – Pilgrims Hospices Fundraising
The donated goods will then be used on stalls in the hospice’s upcomingChristmas Fair being held at The Towers School, Faversham Road, Ashford on 10th November from 10am-3pm.
Ashford Fundraising Manager Victoria Friar said: “We always welcome new donated items throughout the year to use in our fundraising, especially new children’s toys and games. So if yourself or a child you know have enjoyed the trail and would like to make a contribution we would really appreciate a present dropped into the cube.”
Each year Pilgrims Hospices charity supports hundreds of local people coping with a life limiting illness and their families. The charity offers a range of services: from end of life care given on its wards, to its Wellbeing and Social Programme supporting people after they are diagnosed, to live well and stay independent.
5th September 2018
Snowdogs unleashed in Ashford
This autumn a magical arts trail arrives in Ashford; celebrate the town’s best bits to support Pilgrims Hospices in providing local hospice care.
From 12 September the streets and open spaces of Ashford will become an enchanting trail of beautifully crafted, giant Snowdog sculptures. The local community will get involved, enjoy art in cultural spaces, be inspired and entertained and create unforgettable moments and memories.
35 individually designed and beautifully decorated Snowdog sculptures will be placed around the borough to create a world-class sculpture trail that will encourage everyone to discover Ashford.
Sparky is one of a collection of 1.5m tall, individually designed Snowdog sculptures. He’ll soon be joined by the pawfect pack of pups as part of this magical art trail celebrating Ashford life.
Cate Russell, Pilgrims Hospices Chief Executive, with Sparky and Snowy the snowpup
The trail will be on display for 10 weeks from 12September 2018 to 18 November 2018, creating a festive feel in the lead up to Christmas. Visitors and locals will be able to see and celebrate some of Ashford’s best bits to support local hospice care.
Afterwards, each Snowdog sculpture will be auctioned in aid of Pilgrims Hospices to help raise funds for local hospice care.
Cllr Mike Bennett, Portfolio Holder for Culture, said: “This is an exciting arts project that we hope will engage and excite our residents and visitors. The Snowdog sculptures will also raise the borough’s profile, create civic pride and attract thousands of visitors to Ashford.”
Local, regional and well-known artists have brought the sculptures to life, giving them their own personality by creating a unique design for each beautifully decorated dog.
The trail will also be a chance to raise awareness about the services Pilgrims offers for local people coping with incurable illness, and their families and friends.
Cate Russell, Pilgrims Hospices Chief Executive, said: “Our work is as much about supporting people with incurable illness to live as it is about caring for them at end of life. The Snowdogs trail will be a wonderful celebration of Ashford life, so we are really pleased to be involved.”
To kick-start this exciting cultural adventure, a special sponsorship launch event took place on 19 October 2017 at Revelation Ashford. On 22 February 2018, an artist invitation event took place at County Square; a networking evening for local and regional artists to find out more about decorating the Snowdogs.
Working with schools
As part of this very special project Pilgrims Hospices have delivered a schools educational programme alongside the main arts trail. Kindly sponsored by Kingsford Solicitors, 19 schools are taking part in the puppy programme. The Education Programme puts creativity at its heart and is linked with the national curriculum for Key Stages 1-2; this creative project have seen school children decorating their pups during the summer term, alongside classroom activities.
Integral to the Snowpup decoration and main arts trail of giant Snowdogs, Pilgrims has delivered two specialist bereavement training sessions for teachers and support staff to enable educators to address issues surrounding bereavement in a sensitive and age appropriate way. This will give those educators supporting bereaved children a better understanding of the emotional impact that loss has on children – whether it’s a family member, friend or pet – and is in keeping with the story of James in the classic film The Snowman (1982) and Billy in the adaptation of The Snowman and the Snowdog (2012).
On Thursday 10 May 2018 Pilgrims Hospices and Kingsfords Solicitors delivered the 19 Snowpups to Ashford Borough schools.
This Educational Project wouldn’t be possible without the very generous support of our Education Partner, Kingsford Solicitors.
To find out more about this fascinating arts trail taking place in central Ashford in September for 10 weeks please visit the Snowdogs website or click here. Look for news on social media by searching the hashtag #AshfordSnowdogs and following @AshfordSnowdogs on Twitter.
Farewell weekend and auction partner
The final piece in the Snowdogs puzzle is the farewell weekend and auction. These two high profile events are kindly sponsored by Motorline. The farewell weekend is the only place to see all the Snowdogs and Snowpups sculptures together in one place before they race off to find their new ‘furever’ homes at the final event, the Snowdogs auction, where they will be auctioned by Pilgrims Hospices to raise vital funds for local hospice care.
It wouldn’t be possible to deliver the farewell weekend and the final Snowdogs auction without the valuable support of Motorline, a business that prides itself on supporting its local communities.
Motorline has been incredibly generous to Pilgrims Hospices for many years. In 2013, the company kindly donated a van for use by the retail team; since then, more than £3 million each year is raised through retail donations. For 2018 Motorline places the final piece in the Snowdogs jigsaw by becoming Pilgrims’ farewell weekend and auction partner.
Motorline provides vital services in the community by offering family friendly purchases and support through the Motability scheme for people with disabilities. Motorline’s core values reflect Pilgrims’ principles of supporting people to live well in their communities.
The support of the local community and Motorline makes all the difference and Pilgrims are incredibly grateful to them for partnering with us on this magical farewell weekend and auction.
Our work is as much about supporting people with incurable illness to live as it is about caring for them at end of life. The Snowdogs trail will be a wonderful celebration of Ashford life, so we are really pleased to be involved.
Cate Russell, Pilgrims Hospices Chief Executive
The Snowdogs Discover Ashford 2018 project is delivered in partnership with Wild in Art, creative producers of spectacular, mass-appeal public art events, and Snowdog Enterprises Ltd, part of Penguin Ventures.
Other places have held similar events and benefited greatly from providing education and learning opportunities and promoting community engagement and health and wellbeing. These include the hugely popular Go Superlambananas! (Liverpool City of Culture, 2008), Books about Town (London, 2014) and Snowdogs by the Sea (Brighton & Hove, 2016).
Charlie Langhorne, Director of Wild in Art, said: “We’re thrilled to be working with Ashford Borough Council and Pilgrims Hospices on this event. Our events are designed to bring the enjoyment of public art to everyone while offering new ways for people to explore their local area. We hope that businesses in Ashford will recognise the cultural benefits of sponsoring a Snowdog, as well as the positives for their own community. It will be a fantastic spectacle and is an excellent way to raise vital funds for local hospice care.”
As well as raising funds for Pilgrims, the Snowdogs project offers a simple way to open up conversations with children about bereavement and loss, making memories that can be cherished for years to come. Cate Russell added: “We know that so many local families face these sensitive issues, and things can feel especially poignant at Christmas, so the project will be a chance to work with local schools and community groups to explore these topics and highlight the support that’s available for families.”
If you or someone you know is coping with a life limiting illness and you think you may benefit from Pilgrims free services, talk to your GP or Healthcare Professional about your options or click here to read about our Wellbeing and Social Programme.
