Team Francerious Request with Mayor Floor Vermeulen (on the left) and Bert van de Weerd (in the middle with the cheque). Photo KSV Franciscus This translation was made with help of DeepL
KSV Franciscus’ yearly radio marathon for charity, which was held last weekend, raised a record amount of money. Bert van de Weerd of De Speelgoedbank (the Toy Bank) received a preliminary cheque showing 7538.91 euros. ‘That’s quite something, it overwhelms you.’
After three days of non-stop radio and a multitude of initiatives, including a rickshaw ride from Zeeland via Amsterdam to Wageningen, Francerious Request (FR) is over for this year. Chair of the FR committee Frederique Bruijn: ‘It is wonderful to see how a small group of students can set up such a big thing and reach so many people in a short time. On Friday, we had a pub quiz that attracted many Wageningers who are not students, on Sunday many elderly people from the neighbourhood came to play at our bingo game, and the children’s disco also was a success.’
Then there was the rickshaw ride: members of a Franciscus year club cycled with two rickshaws from Zeeland via Amsterdam to Wageningen (380 kilometres). ‘That was a hit,’ says Bruijn. ‘They got on NPO radio 2 with it, so their action reached a lot of people. As a result, donations are still coming in.’ The counter now stands at over 7825 euros, considerably more than the 6400 euros raised last year for the Van Wal Naar Schip foundation and more than three times as much as the 2500 euros raised in 2022 for the Manege Zonder Grenzen. ‘I expect another few hundred euros to come in. On Thursday afternoon, we plan to announce the final amount.’
Right to play
When the cheque with the provisional final amount was handed over at the end of the 72-hour radio broadcast, Bert van de Weerd of the Toy Bank had to shed a tear. ‘This is the largest donation we have received in the 13 years that we exist. That’s not nothing eh! It overwhelms you.’ The money will be used to buy toys for children in families with little to spend. ‘For Christmas, Sinterklaas, Eid Al-Fitr or just a birthday, we don’t care. Every child has the right to play.’
Van de Weerd visited KSV Franciscus every day during the radio marathon. ‘On Friday I attended the opening with the children’s mayors, on Saturday I made radio with someone from the organisation, and on Sunday I brought along oliebollen, which were donated by R. Treep & Dochter, the oliebollen stand at the Hoogvliet. Then those rickshaw-bikers came in, we ate the oliebollen, played bingo and had a beer together. Great fun and also for a good cause! Very special.’
Curious about the final amount? It is expected to be announced on Francerious Request’s Instagram this Thursday.
Translated using DeepL
