Bosses raise pounds for homeless

Ponderosa Group MD Steve Henry and Group Planning Director Richard Midgley battled it out to see who could lose the most weight - with each pound lost resulting in £10 going to Simon on the Streets charity.

The pair worked tirelessly to shed as much weight as possible over the gruelling month-long challenge, with Richard losing nearly a stone (9lbs), but Steve took home the glory with his astonishing 22lbs weight loss.

Steve said: “When we moved the office to Leeds last April, we noticed the number of homeless people sleeping rough and thought it would be good to do our bit to make a difference.

“We worked with Simon On The Streets around seven years ago on their Blue Plaque campaign at Christmas, so we have been aware of their amazing work and wanted to undertake some charity fundraising and thought a January fitness drive would be good for us both.”

Simon on the Streets is an independent charity that offers support to West Yorkshire’s homeless community, primarily rough sleepers.

The charity’s aim is to bring people leading solitary, harmful lives, with little or no vision for a better future, in from the margins of society.

Gordon Laing, from Simon on the Streets, said: “We really appreciate Ponderosa’s donation. It will really make a difference in supporting the homeless community in West Yorkshire.

“Both Steve and Richard did amazing jobs with the Pound for Pound challenge and we can’t thank them enough for their continued support.”