A BOXING organised by a group of Ayrshire university students has raised more than £10,500 for charity.
Fighting Stigma raised funds for Ayrshire's own men's mental health charity Release, and also won a Student Live Event of the Year award.
It was organised by four University of the West of Scotland (UWS) students, Nicola Clarke, Kenzie Mackay, Adele Mullan and Toni Woods.
They are on the BA Event Management course at UWS, and were tasked with organising a charity event using a £100 grant.
The group co-ordinated with a boxing gym, the local authority, and medical providers to ensure the fights could go ahead.
They worked to gain sponsors, allowing the evening to feature an LED video wall, pyrotechnics, a professional singer, a piper, a live auction and an afterparty, as well as 12 boxing matches.
The chairperson of Release, Robbie Muir, added: "We are over the moon for Nicola, Kenzie, Adele and Toni - their hard work and ambition in setting up the Fighting Stigma event was unreal.
"Being a small charity, £10,500 is an absolutely amazing amount of money and has already allowed us to scale up our awareness campaigns to help us reduce the stigma around men’s mental health.
"We look forward to hopefully working with them again. What they’ve achieved is truly outstanding."
Ms Clarke, who was project manager for the night, said: "We are absolutely delighted to have won this award, and even more delighted to have raised £10,512 for a fantastic local charity.
"Release works to reduce the stigma surrounding men's mental health, and does incredible work to tackle the rise in male deaths through suicide.
"It such an important cause, and being able to support them in this way meant a lot to all of us.
“None of us had organised an event like this before, and the feedback has been extremely positive; to the point we’re in the process of organising a follow-up event which will take place in August.
"We're very grateful to our sponsors, and to The Park Hotel in Kilmarnock, which hosted the event."
Dr Jenny Flinn, lecturer in event marketing, added: "This was an ambitious event for students with limited experience, and their dedication and professionalism shone through.
"Fighting Stigma was slick and well organised, raising an astounding sum of money for a brilliant cause."
Other projects included an art show that raised £1,300 for the Beatson Cancer Charity, a Western-themed bingo event raising £830 for Accord Hospice, and a gathering for female entrepreneurs that brought in £392 for Women’s Aid.
Dr Briony Sharp, events management programme leader, said: "This particular assignment is a great opportunity for our students to design a unique event which makes a positive change, raising money for good causes.
"I’m really pleased that Nicola, Kenzie, Adele and Toni have been recognised with this award, and I am delighted at the funds raised by all of our students – they should all feel proud of the difference their efforts will make."
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