AN auction in Lichfield has brought the curtain down on the March of the Elephants art trail – and helped raise £125,000 for St Giles Hospice.
Around 200 people attended the sale at Lichfield Cathedral, while a further 2,000 watched auctioneer Richard Winterton bring the gavel down on the decorated sculptures in aid of the Whittington charity.
Throughout the summer 30 decorated large and 40 creative mini-elephants had been on display across Lichfield, Sutton Coldfield and Tamworth.
The stars of the auction included Mighty Oak, inspired by the region’s beautiful green spaces and woodland areas, which went for £8,200, and Flora, a glow-in-the-dark design inspired by nature, that fetched an impressive £7,000.
Tony, painted by the St Giles Hospice team and signed by Spandau Ballet’s Tony Hadley, reached a high note of £3,200, while Daisy, one of the smaller elephants sporting a silver floral design, went for £5,600.
Elinor Eustace, interim CEO of St Giles Hospice, said:
“We are so grateful to every single bidder and of course to the ones who are taking the elephants home.
“We have had some phenomenal bids in the cathedral. It has been fantastic with over £125,000 raised on the sculptures alone, plus the amount we had raised just before this event too.
“It’s been a fantastic night for St Giles and thank you to the whole community for their support, it really does make a difference.”
The funding comes after the hospice announced last month it would be making a number of redundancies as it bids to plug a funding gap.
Elinor said:
“With hospices across the UK facing a £77million funding deficit, and St Giles grappling with a £1.5million annual shortfall, events like the auction are more than just fundraisers – they’re lifelines.
“Every pound raised helps us continue providing essential care to those who need it most in our community.
“In these challenging times, the success of this auction is a powerful reminder of the impact we can make when we come together.”
Auctioneer Richard said:
“What a wonderful evening with an elephant-astic total raised for St Giles Hospice.
“This project was all about supporting the amazing work carried out by the team at St Giles and raising vital funds at a time when hospices need our support more than ever.
“I’m delighted that it has achieved that brilliantly. I’d like to thank everyone at St Giles Hospice and Wild In Art for their hard work and dedication in making March of the Elephants such a superb success.
“A special thank you goes to all our bidders and underbidders in the cathedral and online – every single lot sold on the night, and we couldn’t have done it without you all.
“We were honoured to offer our auction services to March of the Elephants, and I’m proud to have brought down the gavel so these superb sculptures can go off to their new forever homes.”
A big THANK YOU to all involved – massive result for a really good local charity
Wow! What a fantastic result for our local hospice and congratulations to everyone who got to take one of these lovely elephants home. My family have really enjoyed seeing the elephants, and it was brilliant to see the whole herd all together in Beacon Park over the weekend.