Blog Post

Parenta Trust: Andy and the furry Volvo

Bryony Abbott • Mar 11, 2014

Rallying to raise money!

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When I was invited to take part in the inaugural Maidstone to Monaco run in September 2013, I jumped at the chance, just knowing that it was going to be a fantastic adventure. If I am honest, the true purpose of the trip didn’t really factor in that decision; the idea of driving with my buddy and a group of like minded people down to Monaco on some of the world’s best driving roads was enough to hook me. What I didn’t know at the time was what a truly magnificent life changing journey it was going to be.

So, the challenge was to put a team together (in my case it was just me and my pal Andy), buy a car for around £400 and get it to Monaco and with luck, back too, whilst raising £1,000 per team to build a pre-school in Uganda. Easy, or so I thought!

The fun began weeks before, searching the usual internet sites for suitable cars. After looking at everything from old ice cream vans to “classic” Mercedes with stellar miles, Lady Luck smiled on us and eBay came up trumps with a 1997 Volvo T5 that had previously been used for a similar charity run and was already festooned in, of all things teddy bear fur! Team Andy and the Furry Volvo were born and, after a little fettling, were ready to take on the world!

As it transpired, raising the £1,000 sponsorship turned out to be easier than we imagined. Once word got out of what we were doing, I was overwhelmed by the support and generosity of friends, family and work colleagues and even before we set off, the cash was in the bank.

The real trip began on a sunny Wednesday morning. Meeting at the Parenta premises in Maidstone, we signed away our lives and shook hands with the other mad players, some of which had gone to the effort to dress up in garb to match their cars. In additional to the Furry Volvo there was a motley collection of a dozen cars that included Batman and Robin in the Bat Mobile, The A Team in a suitably festooned van and characters from Grease in a very un-Grease like Vauxhall Vectra!

First stop Dover and a ferry to the continent. No casualties so far!

The first day was a 360 mile blast through France, Belgium and Luxembourg, a quick skirt into Germany and on to our first stop at a campsite back in France. Little did we know this was going to be the only day on fast roads, just to get us far enough south for the real fun to start the following day. One broken exhaust, one speeding ticket and one customs search…not bad for a first day. That first night we pitched tents in the dark and as the cars dribbled in, beers and wine were consumed (in moderation of course!) and great friendships were born.

Day 2 started early with the sun shining (it stayed that way for the rest of the trip) and spirits were high. Less miles to travel that day just 290, but the roads became more “interesting”. From France we entered Germany (again), through the Black Forest then into Switzerland and the Alps. That second day was a long climb up and we conquered the legendary Furka pass. If Hannibal and his elephants could do it, there was no way we would fail! That road in itself was the driving highlight for me and was worth all the effort alone. The best however was yet to come.

Day 3 we travelled back into France along winding mountain roads and found time to stop for lunch at Chamonix and an unplanned cable car ride to the summit of Mont Blanc. Tired and high on emotion, it genuinely felt like we were on top of the world in every sense. Vin blanc on Mont Blanc and we were on our way again through the famous Mont Blanc tunnel and into Italy, before driving back into France for a slap up camp site gastronomic delight; by this time we were all tired of dining on tinned gruel and pushed the boat out, some of the more well prepared amongst us even found champagne to quaff!

Day 4 was a final push through the Alps heading down to Digne and into Monaco. I don’t mind admitting that as we entered the principality in cars that couldn’t have been more different to the Bugattis, Ferraris and Bentleys, I might have choked back an emotional tear. We had all made it and even managed to take in part of the famous grand prix circuit in our trusty old bangers. That night we celebrated in style, feeling like the kings and queens that for that moment we were.

Final day was an 800 mile toe down slog back along French motorways aiming to get a ferry back to Blighty sometime that night. With 600 miles to go the Furry Volvo decided to play hardball and sprang an oil leak. That’s when the friendships and camaraderie built up over the previous days really showed and pulling together we all made it back to Calais in time to catch the last ferry home. Arriving at Calais and knowing that we had prevailed despite all the odds, we were all winners. Just look at the smiles, they tell the whole story.

And best of all, let’s not forget the real reason behind the trip, we raised enough money to build a school that will help change lives and provide the building blocks for a better future for children in Uganda

Since that last trip I have been privileged to join the board of Parenta Trust. We will be running a second Maidstone to Monaco rally in 2014, so if you want to come along for a trip of a lifetime and help change the lives of children in East Africa, then sign up now. I promise you won’t regret it!

By Parenta Websites 28 Jul, 2023
Parenta Trust, the charitable arm of the Parenta Group of Companies is thrilled to announce the construction of its sixth school in Eastern Africa, to complement the existing five schools in Uganda. This new initiative will provide quality education, care, and hope to 200 orphaned and disadvantaged children, all under the age of 6, furthering Parenta Trust’s mission to contribute to vulnerable communities across Africa. "We are delighted to announce the building of our sixth school in Eastern Africa," said Allan Presland, Founder of Parenta Trust and Chairman of Parenta Group. "Our commitment to providing education to children in disadvantaged communities has only grown stronger over the years. With this new school, we will be able to positively impact the lives of even more children, giving them the tools they need to succeed and thrive”. Parenta Trust has a proven track record of building and developing schools in Africa, with the existing schools looking after and educating up to 1200 children concurrently. By expanding into Rwanda, Parenta Trust seeks to strengthen its ties with the local community and engage with stakeholders to create lasting, positive change. The new school will be in Bikamba village in Kajevuba cell, Ntarabana sector. This is an area of stone quarries and sugarcane plantations which leads to children starting work at a young age and in turn facilitates the vicious cycle of poverty in the area. Parenta Trust firmly believes in the power of collaboration and aims to work closely with the Rwandan community and its partner on the ground in Africa, Fields of Life, to uplift the lives of these vulnerable children. The new building will be constructed alongside a holistic programme which includes providing sanitation, a sustainable feeding programme, teacher training, a well-thought-through Early Childhood development curriculum and will work together with local government and the Church of Rwanda. Allan Presland continued; “Parenta Trust continues its commitment and mission to keep building new schools in East Africa to transform communities and the lives of desperate children. We are currently raising money for our seventh and eighth schools and we invite individuals, nurseries, schools, corporations, and organisations to support this transformative project through donations, sponsorships, and partnerships. Together, we can make a significant impact on the lives of disadvantaged children, providing them with the hope and opportunity they need to shape a better future.” About Parenta Trust School Parenta Trust is the charitable arm of the Parenta Group of Companies, which includes Parenta Training – the largest provider of apprenticeships to the childcare sector in England, and Parenta Software, a leading provider of childcare management software. The Charity was formed in 2015 and seeks to transform lives for orphaned and disadvantaged children in areas of abject poverty. https://www.parentatrust.com/sponsor-a-child www.parentatrust.com For media enquiries, partnership opportunities, or donation information, please contact: Gail James: PR & Communications Marketing Manager, on +44 (0) 1622 824372 or Gail.James@parenta.com
By Parenta Websites 10 Feb, 2020
From 24 to 28 June 2020, teams in both two- and four-wheeled vehicles will travel 2,000 miles through eight countries, traverse the Alps and negotiate the winding roads of the Furka Pass. This annual five-day adventure involves camping under the stars and taking part in challenges - before reaching the final destination of glamorous Monaco. All funds raised from the rally go towards building pre-schools for children in need of a quality education in deprived areas of the world. Parenta Trust founder and trustee, Allan Presland said: “The Maidstone to Monaco rally never fails to disappoint. It’s a fantastic way to bring people together for a great cause and have loads of fun along the way. Motorbikes, as well as cars, are welcome and all two and four wheel enthusiasts unite on this five-day journey of fun, laughter and exploration. We already have a few teams signed up who had such a fantastic adventure last year that they can’t wait to do it all over again! “The support we receive every year is nothing less than astounding; but we are always looking for more people to get involved, so we are appealing for more teams to come and join us and help us with “the drive to build a school”! From this year, Parenta Trust, working hand-in-hand with Parenta Group, is aligning itself with the UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development , in particular Goal No. 4, Quality Education which sits perfectly within Parenta’s values and ethos, allowing greater synergy between the training provider and the Trust. Find out more about Parenta’s alignment with Global Goals. Click here to find out more and to sign up for Maidstone to Monaco rally! About Parenta Trust Parenta Trust supports disadvantaged children across the world by providing quality pre-school education. It was founded by Allan Presland in 2013 after a life-changing trip to Kampala in Uganda. The stark reality of poverty and lack of education for pre-school children hit him hard on the day he found a young girl on a rubbish tip on top of a cemetery in an area known locally as ‘Kosovo’. She was scavenging for food and Allan found it heartbreaking that she clearly had to fend for herself to even find food let alone be given an early years education. He returned to the UK to set up a charity, leveraging his existing network of contacts in the early years sector and his ambitious quest to build one pre-school per year began.
By Parenta Websites 30 Jul, 2019
During their five-day escapade, eleven teams in Parenta Trust Rally travelled through eight countries, traversed the Alps and negotiated the winding roads of the Furka Pass in some of the hottest temperatures ever recorded. They camped under the stars and undertook various challenges along the way, before reaching their final destination of Monaco - all in aid of “the drive to build a school”. After the teams had returned from their expedition, we spoke to Parenta Trust founder and trustee, Allan Presland, and first time rally participant and Parenta Software Developer, Luke Liddell.
By Parenta Websites 20 Dec, 2018
Early years education charity, Parenta Trust is calling for teams to take part in a ‘road trip of a lifetime’ – the Maidstone to Monaco Rally. From 26th to 30th June 2019, ‘petrol heads’ in both two- and four-wheeled vehicles will travel 2,000 miles through eight countries, traverse the Alps and negotiate the winding roads of the Furka Pass. The annual five-day escapade encompasses camping under the stars and taking part in challenges - before reaching the final destination of glamorous Monaco. All funds raised from the rally go towards building pre-schools for children in need of a quality education in deprived areas of the world. Parenta Trust founder and trustee, Allan Presland said; “The Maidstone to Monaco rally is a fantastic way to bring people together for a great cause and have fun along the way. It’s growing in size year-on-year and our 6th rally, in 2019, will be opened up to two-wheel vehicles, not just four. So now, car and motorcycle ‘petrol heads’ can unite on this five-day journey of fun, laughter and exploration. The support we receive every year is nothing less than astounding; but we are always looking for more people to get involved. We already have quite a few teams signed up – but the more the merrier - so we are appealing for more teams to come and join us and help us with “the drive to build a school”! “Every day I feel privileged to have the opportunity to play a part in the crucial task of giving children in deprived areas of the world an early years education. Our 5th school will open in early 2019 and in addition, funds raised from the 2018 Maidstone to Monaco Rally and our two charity balls, means that we are now finalising funds for our next school. Together we can raise enough funds to continue building a new pre-school year on year. With every pre-school we build, we can give on average another 200 children the opportunity they deserve to have an early years education – come and join us for an automotive adventure!” Parenta Trust, which supports disadvantaged children across the world by providing quality pre-school education, was founded by Allan Presland in 2013 after a life-changing trip to Kampala in Uganda. The stark reality of poverty and lack of education for pre-school children hit him hard on the day he found a young girl on a rubbish tip on top of a cemetery in an area known locally as ‘Kosovo’. She was scavenging for food and Allan found it heartbreaking that she clearly had to fend for herself to even find food let alone be given an early years education. He returned to the UK to set up a charity, leveraging his existing network of contacts in the early years sector and his ambitious quest to build one pre-school per year began. Further information on the Maidstone to Monaco rally can be found here .
By Parenta Trust 22 Nov, 2018
With Christmas just around the corner and Black Friday weekend upon us (23rd to 26th November), why not sign up to Amazon Smile and make even more of a difference to Parenta Trust? Amazon Smile is a website operated by Amazon with the same products, prices, and shopping features as Amazon.com. The difference is that when you shop on Amazon Smile and select Parenta Trust as your chosen charity, the Amazon Smile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price of what you’ve bought to Parenta Trust. More information can be found here – please help us by registering. Happy shopping!
By Parenta Trust 22 Nov, 2018
Parenta Trust is now in its 5th year and we are happy to announce that our 5th school will be complete by early 2019! The Komoret Nursery School in Nakapiripit, Karamoja is part of a brand new school community project and phase 2 of the build includes the nursery school funded by Parenta Trust. With every pre-school we build, together, we can give on average another 200 children the opportunity they deserve to have an early years education.
By Parenta Trust 22 Nov, 2018
Registration is now open and teams have already signed up for the road trip of a lifetime – the 2019 Parenta Trust Maidstone to Monaco Rally. Don't miss this great adventure, register today! From 26th – 30th June 2019, we will travel 2,000 miles across 8 countries in our ‘rally’ cars and motorbikes and finish in Monaco with a celebratory night out! All proceeds from this fundraiser will go towards building our next pre-school.
By Parenta Trust 22 Nov, 2018
The first was held in Maidstone at the Great Danes Mercure Hotel in September where a sparkling fun-filled evening was had by all. The second was held at the Hilton Bath City Hotel in October where guests enjoyed a wonderful dinner, took part in party games and danced the night away, all in aid of such an amazing cause. Some fabulous prizes were donated to the silent auctions, including a signed rugby shirt from Bath Rugby Club. An incredible £7,000 was raised, with all proceeds going directly to help provide an early years education to the children who need it most. A very special thank you to both Suzi Presland and Amanda Presland for their tireless work organising these two events – no mean feat!
By Natalie MacDonald 06 Jul, 2018
Participants in an annual car rally, organised by Parenta Trust, have made a triumphant return to Kent after a journey of over 2000 miles in just 5 days. The drivers assembled at Parenta headquarters in Maidstone on Wednesday 27th June to begin their epic adventure, which lasted until Sunday 1st July. The rally – now in its 5th year – raises vital funds to build pre-schools for children in deprived areas of the world. Teams are tasked with finding a car costing no more than £350 to complete a ‘road trip of a lifetime’ through Europe. Travelling through 8 countries, teams must negotiate the winding roads of the infamous Furka Pass, camping and undertaking various challenges along the way. Their final destination before returning home is Monaco, where there is a traditional celebratory night out to mark the end of the rally. Parenta Trust founder and trustee, Allan Presland said: “What a fantastic and emotional journey! We are enormously grateful to all the people who joined us on our 5th rally and, of course, to those who sponsored those taking part in what was 5 days of adventure and excitement with plenty of fun and laughter along the way! “We had our fair share of car breakdowns…mostly my car, as usual! We had an amazing response from the European authorities throughout our journey – in particular the Border Guards and Police in Belgium – they even asked if they could get inside my car for a photo opportunity! We were given a special escort at one point; and as we approached the Mont Blanc tunnel the guards looked officious but when they saw the furry banger cars and realised we were participating in a charity rally, they laughed and joked with us and were very supportive. “Every day I feel privileged to have the opportunity to play a part in the crucial task of giving children in East Africa the chance to have an early years education. We have raised a significant amount of money from this rally and we’re on target for the £14k we were hoping for. Fundraising work will commence for our 7th school early next year; and the funds raised from this year’s rally help to build our 6th school. Our 5th school - in honour of former Parenta head of marketing and trustee of the charity, Dan Carlton, who sadly passed away in December 2016 – will be ready by Easter 2019 and we very much hope that Dan’s parents who participated in the rally for the first time this year, will be able to officially open it. “We have two more fundraising events to look forward to this year, both slightly more glamorous than a car rally! Two black tie charity balls - one in Maidstone and one in Bath – a great way to end a successful year of fundraising with wonderful food, drink, dancing and of course, the obligatory charity raffle!” The charity was founded by Allan Presland in 2013 following a life-changing trip to Kampala in Uganda. Whilst there, Allan witnessed a young girl scavenging for food on a rubbish tip on top of a cemetery. It was in this moment that the stark reality of poverty and the lack of education for pre-school children in Africa struck him. Upon his return to the UK, Allan set up the Parenta Trust with the aim of providing high-quality early years education to children in disadvantaged countries. With the help of his contacts, he started an ambitious quest to build one pre-school per year. With four schools completed in just four years, April 2019 will see the opening of the charity’s fifth pre-school in Uganda. Find out more about sponsoring a child in a Parenta Trust school here .
By Natalie MacDonald 15 Jun, 2018
Last October, trustee Marie Kershaw travelled to Uganda to see how money from her grandfather’s estate had been used to help Nyakabale nursery school. The Parenta Trust’s fourth nursery, located in Kasese, was identified as being the most in need and so it was arranged for the funds to be spent there. A small piece of land, two cows, a bull, the animals’ shelter and food for 1 year was bought with the generous donation. Happily, the duo of cows and bull have now produced a calf. The milk from the cows is being used to make nutritious porridge for 450 children. The headmaster of the school hopes that the herd will continue to thrive. Marie said: “I was overjoyed to hear how well the cows and bull were doing at Nyakabale. It is great to hear how the herd is growing and that so many children are receiving good nutrition from the milk that the cows are producing each day.” The Parenta Trust is committed to providing life-changing opportunities for disadvantaged children around the world. Having completed the build of 4 nurseries in just four years, the charity is making plans to complete 250 schools in the next decade. You can support the Parenta Trust by making a donation , sponsoring a child in a Parenta Trust school or taking part in a fundraising event .
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