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Golfers from clubs across the Harrogate district and beyond will converge on Rudding Park next month for special annual event organised by the area’s governing body. 

The Meet the President event held by the Harrogate & District Union of Golf Clubs (HDUGC) will see 120 golfers take on Rudding Park’s Hawtree Golf Course – the home course of 2024’s president Phil Kitching – before more than 150 guests attend an evening event at the Rudding Park Hotel. 

Founded in 1943, the HDUGC spans 13 golf clubs, spanning Otley and Ilkley up to Bedale, and Thirsk and Northallerton, as well as all the clubs in Harrogate and Knaresborough, and represents more than 9,000 members at a local, county and national level.    

Attendees at the event on Friday, April 26 will include the captains and lady captains of all 13 HDUGC clubs, as well as officials from five other Yorkshire inter-district unions. 

Matt Wharldall, of Rudding Park Golf Club, said: 

“The HDUGC runs 44 events throughout the year, and this one is the only one that is by invitation only.  

“This year’s Meet the President event promises to be the best yet. As well as the usual breakfast, golf, barbecue and President’s speech, this year we’ll be holding an auction and raffle to raise funds for junior golf.” 

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Knaresborough hero Bruce Reid seeks help for son

A Knaresborough man who has devoted much of his life to helping others is now appealing for help to get vital medical treatment for his son.

Retired firefighter Bruce Reid is best known in the town for organising free Christmas Day meals for up to 100 people. But he has also raised tens of thousands of pounds over the years for a host of other good causes in North Yorkshire.

His son Andrew, 32, underwent surgery for a brain tumour three years ago. The operation successfully removed 80% of the tumour but it continues to grow and the family has set up a gofundmepage to pay for treatment abroad as nothing suitable is available in the UK.

Bruce, who was made an MBE in 2015 for services to the Fire Fighters Charity and the community, said:

“Surgery is no longer an option but there are some potential treatments abroad and this is the reason we need to raise as much as we can to make this possible to access.”

Bruce, along with son Andrew, daughter Amanda Glennon and nephew Callum Reid, are training for the London Landmarks Half Marathon on April 7.

The fundraising target is currently £10,000 but the actual sum needed is likely to be several times higher. However, because the family is still unclear what treatment is required, or the sum, they are just trying to raise as much as they can for now.

Bruce appealed for help at this week’s Knaresborough & District Chamber AGM and said he hoped to arrange fundraising events in Knaresborough after the half marathon to continue generating income. Members agreed to do all they could to support him.

Speaking to the Stray Ferret afterwards, he said:

“We don’t know how much we will need yet. We are gearing ourselves up. All many pledged will be spent purely on treatment for Andrew.”

You can donate to the cause here.

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Son of Leeds United legend raises funds to beat his own cancer

A father-of-five from Harrogate has launched a campaign to raise funds for his own medical treatment after being diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of cancer. 

Stuart Gray, whose father is Leeds United legend Eddie Gray, has stage four cholangiocarcinoma – a cancer that forms in the bile ducts. He has been told that by the time this cancer begins to show symptoms, it is usually too advanced for surgery, which is currently the only known cure. 

Complicating the situation, he has also been diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), a chronic liver disease with no known cure, which doctors believe was a likely contributing factor in the development of the cancer. 

Writing on the GoFundMe page set up by his brother Nick, Stuart said: 

“The severity of my illness means that doctors expect my life expectancy to be significantly reduced. However, treatments are available for the cholangiocarcinoma that can prolong life expectancy, and in some rare cases even cure this terrible disease, and I am determined to do everything I can to fight it with everything I have.” 

By Friday afternoon – just a few days after launch – Stuart, 49, had already raised over £30,000 of his £100,000 goal. 

In an update posted today, Stuart said: 

“To all the people who have donated and sent messages and good wishes, I want to say how deeply thankful I am to each and every one of you. It means the world to me and my family to see the support we have. Love Stuart x” 

Some of the treatments for Stuart’s illness are widely available on the NHS, but some of the newer and more experimental treatments are less readily available and very costly. 

In addition, Stuart’s treatment could include biopsies and testing, CT, MRI scans and X-rays, the fitting of stents to relieve pain, alternative wellbeing therapies, and travel and accommodation costs when seeing consultants in London or abroad. 

Stuart said: 

“Unfortunately, time is not on my side, and to wait for approval of these various experimental treatments, and then for the treatments to be administered by the NHS, will likely take years. Accessing these drugs and treatments privately is costly and can be difficult. 

“My family and I will be posting regular updates along the way and will be partaking in various fundraising efforts to help pay for any treatment that may be needed in the coming months and, God willing, years. 

“Any help or support you can offer during this process would be appreciated more than you will ever know.” 

Stuart will also donate a percentage of the funds raised to AMMF, the cholangiocarcinoma charity. He added: 

“If/when treatment is no longer needed, for whatever reason, all of the surplus funds will also go to the AMMF.”

Like his father and his famous uncle, Frankie Gray, Stuart is also a former footballer, having played for various clubs including Celtic and Reading, as well as making seven appearance for Scotland at under-21 level.

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