Two much-loved events in the City of London’s social calendar, the Gulls’ Eggs Luncheon and the Grouse & Grape Luncheon, were combined this year to create one spectacular virtual gathering.
Guests from the wealth management and other financial sectors joined together online for the evening of 18 November. Despite the unique challenges that 2020 has presented, these events have raised over £60,000.00 so far for The Cure Parkinson’s Trust.
The Gulls’ Egg Luncheon was due to celebrate its 32nd year in May 2020, and ordinarily sees over 500 professionals gather in the historic Merchant Taylors’ Hall in London to network and raise much needed funds for Parkinson’s research. Similarly this event’s younger offshoot, the Grouse & Grape Luncheon, was set to be held in Spencer House this October.
Both events have developed loyal followings and are firmly established in the City’s social calendar. Of course, COVID-19 restrictions meant that neither event could take place in its usual format, so the Luncheons turned virtual for 2020.
While perhaps the ambience of networking and socialising in a historic London venue may have been missing, guests were still treated to a bottle of wine (posted to guests through their letterbox) to enjoy during the event.
The Cure Parkinson’s Trust is a charity dedicated to curing Parkinson’s. As a result of the pandemic, 95 percent of its fundraising events have been postponed or cancelled.
Will Cook, CEO of the charity, said: “This charity has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, so we are particularly pleased to be the beneficiary charity of this virtual gathering, bringing together the altruistic traditions of Gulls’ Eggs and Grouse & Grape. It is an honour and a pleasure to be associated for the fifth year running with two long-standing fundraising events, both of which have been great successes for many years.”
Rupert Phelps and Michael Maslinski, chairs of the Gull’s Eggs and Grouse & Grape Committees, added: “Obviously we cannot meet physically this year, so we are combining these events to raise much needed money for our nominated charity. Both Committees were determined to do everything possible to offset the financial impact on the hugely valuable work of The Cure Parkinson’s Trust.”
The funds raised will be directed towards vital research into new treatments to slow, stop and reverse Parkinson’s disease. Around 145,000 people in the UK are living with Parkinson’s, and it is predicted that one in 37 people will receive a diagnosis of Parkinson’s in their lifetime. The Cure Parkinson’s Trust funds innovative research around the world which is dedicated to finding new treatments that can slow, stop or reverse Parkinson’s.
To view a video of the event, please click here