PROMISEworks, a charity that transforms the lives of young people and adults across Somerset, received a cheque for £50,000 from trainees working at Leonardo in Yeovil at a special celebration dinner recently, following two years of intensive fundraising.
The PROMISEworks charity works to increase the self-esteem and future prospects of vulnerable young people and adults through quality one-to-one mentoring. The charity has confirmed that their volunteers have shared direct feedback that they are often the only stable adult in their mentees’ lives. 
The cheque was presented during a special dinner to celebrate the achievements of Leonardo Early Careers Trainees, who received certificates of their course completions from Adam Clarke, Managing Director Leonardo Helicopters UK.
The money raised will fund 12 mentees across their two-year mentoring journey. The support creates a framework of mutual trust and respect that many haven’t encountered in the past, to allow them to build new belief in themselves and other people.
Ali Hart, General Manager for PROMISEworks said: “We are so grateful to the Trainees who have worked so hard to fundraise for PROMISEworks over the last couple of years. What brilliant and dedicated people who, not only work hard to build their careers but also to support local charities by raising significant amounts of money. It’s a fantastic model which more organisations could benefit from adopting”.
Freya Andrews, Chair of the Leonardo Trainee Charity Committee said: “Together, we’ve worked with determination to reach our fundraising goal, and it has been an incredibly rewarding journey to support PROMISEworks. During the celebration, we reflected back on everything we’d done over the past two years to raise money from cake runs and mini site abseils to the Yeovil Half Marathon and it gave us all such a feeling of pride. ”
Molly Dugmore, Leonardo Sales and Marketing Graduate said: “One of our most challenging fundraising activities was a two day hike over Dartmoor. None of us had ever used maps or done anything like it before and at one point, it got really tough especially on the second day.
“We had seven miles to go over wild open moorland and all you wanted to do was just say, ‘Look, I’m just going to call and get them to pick me up’. But we didn’t give up and we made sure no one was left behind. For me, that’s what PROMISEworks is all about, they don’t leave anyone behind.”
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