A fantastic turn out at Finca La Alegria Family Charity Fun Day

It was a fantastic turn out of guests, volunteers and charity stalls yesterday, Sunday, May 1, at the Finca La Alegria Charity Family Fun Day raising money for Ukraine and the beautiful livery stables in La Cala.

Around 150 guests were out in force to enjoy the charity day and support raising funds for the Finca La Alegria stables and the people of Ukraine. The bar was open and guests enjoyed live music from Mama Kath & the Soul Sisters, pony rides, face painting, an assault course and plenty of fun games. There was a wide range of charity stalls including Donkey Dreamland, ACE and the Diabetes Association as well as independent stalls such as Nu-Skin, Arty Crafty Mummy, Roberts Deli, Pretty and Unique Boutique, KiKi’s Closet and Villa Carmen Bees.

Steph of Yorkshire Linen said of the day: “It’s a great atmosphere and everyone here loves the stables, which is a lovely family friendly place. It’s nice to see such a great turnout and to raise money for Ukraine.”

The day saw lots of volunteers out in the sun, with stalls set up selling a range of things from handbags and clothes, beauty products, homemeade crafts and various things for the home. Todd Jones, originally from South Wales and living in La Cala since he was 12-years-old, said: “My girlfriend works at the stables and teaches horseriding, so its great to raise some money for the stables and for the building of a new arena here.”

Joely Smith, originally from Liverpool and owner of Pretty and Unique Boutique, was at the event selling clothing from her shop. Joely said: “We have come here to support the stables as my daughter horse rides here and it’s a great family-friendly place. We have donated a prize for the raffle and it’s just great to be here and give something back.”

Keely Ritchie of KiKi’s Closet also had a stall selling clothing at the event, she said: “All the children have been coming to the stables since they were little. It’s a great place with a family vibe and we have come out today in support of the stables.”

Kat Burnett of Kat’s Candles was hosting a stall at the event with her vegan-friendly candles and wax melts, along with honey producer Matt Trigell who donated a bottle of his honey-infused champagne. Both said that they had enjoyed the day and that it is important to be supporting local charities.

In the charity stall tent, we spoke with Hazel Mears of the Riviera Cats Association (RACA), which is dedicated to neutering, rescuing and rehoming cats, as well as controlling the cat colonies. RACA works with Mijas Felina, an association helping street cats, who were also promoting some of the beautiful cats they have available for adoption. Manuela Bernardo of Mijas Felina said: “We do a lot of work neutering cats, particularly in the large cat colonies. It’s really great to be here and to be educating people about this important issue and to spread awareness. We’ve had one adoption today, and we also need more volunteers to help at the association.”

We also spoke with Mark Ridler and Martyn Paylor of ACE Animal Care Association, which has a no-kill policy for all of the animals that come into their care. Martyn said: “We currently have 531 dogs and 230 cats and it’s great to be here to let people know about the charity and to raise funds. The tombola has gone well and it’s good that the stables have facilitated this for charities.”

Also present were La Cala Lions, a charity shop in La Cala, and Action Against Diabetes – who were doing free diabetes testing at the event. Anne Bowles of Action Against Diabetes said: “We are very pleased to have been here and we have met some people who needed help with diabetes.”

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