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The Jardine Motors Group has raised £86,000 at a black tie charity dinner for its corporate charity partner Whizz-Kidz.

200 guests were at the event hosted at its Colchester Ferrari, Maserati and Porsche dealerships on November 21.

The ball featured a live auction, conducted by BCA auctioneer David Broughton. For the main lot, a restored 1982 Porsche 911 SC, guests were joined by telephone and online bidders.  Bidding set off at a frantic pace with the final winning bid of £52,000 received via telephone.

Whizz-Kidz chief executive Ruth Owen OBE said: “It was a pleasure to attend Jardine Motors Group’s wonderful fundraising dinner in aid of Whizz-Kidz. I was personally hugely impressed and overwhelmed by the night – the high profile branding, support and enthusiasm for Whizz-Kidz was nothing short of amazing.

“The vital funds raised by the incredibly generous guests attending will help us reach even more of the 70,000 disabled youngsters waiting to fulfil their potential – through life-transforming wheelchairs, skills training and work opportunities.”

Chief executive of Jardine Motors Group Mark Herbert said: “I am extremely proud of what we have managed to achieve this evening and I’d like to thank everybody who has helped us reach this fantastic total. 

“Our sponsors for their financial support, our suppliers who have given their services for free, the team at Porsche Centre Cambridge for the hundreds of hours they have devoted to restoring the Porsche 911 and of course our guests for their generosity on the night which just blew us away.  This evening will be difficult to beat but we are already thinking about next year.”