MORE than £5,000 of vital funding has been handed to two good causes thanks to a golf captain who was inspired by his wife’s battle with arthritis.

Glynn Simms served as the 2018 captain at Cricket St Thomas Golf Club, and worked tirelessly on fundraisers throughout the year.

In total, a giant charity cheque for £3,717 was donated to a representative from Versus Arthritis, while £2,000 was handed to St Margaret’s Somerset Hospice.

On hand for the cheque presentation with Glynn was his daughter Isla Simms, who also works at Cricket St Thomas Golf Club, and the 2019 captain Steve Barry.

Glynn said: “All the money raised was from the support of members, family and friends at events held at the club during my captain’s year in 2018.

“This included my Captain’s Day, a charity golf day and auction, and Easter and Christmas quizzes.”

Versus Arthritis was launched in September 2018 after the merger of the UK’s two leading arthritis charities, Arthritis Research UK and Arthritis Care.

“I chose Arthritis Research UK as my chosen charity as it is a charity close to my heart,” Glynn added.

“My wife has been suffering with this awful condition since she was diagnosed at the age of 16.

“St Margaret’s Hospice is a fantastic local charity that we have supported for the last two years and it is a charity that most members at the club can also relate to, they do fantastic work with terminally ill patients and their families.”

Adrian Williams is the community relationships fundraiser at Versus Arthritis.

He said: “Glynn put an enormous amount of effort into his fundraising for our charity and we were proud to work with him.

“Versus Arthritis works hard to push back against the pain and isolation caused by muscoskeletal pain.

“For the year of his captaincy at Cricket St Thomas, Glynn pulled out all the stops to help us in our vital work.

“Thank You Glynn and everyone at Cricket St Thomas Golf Club for offering hope to the 10 million people who wake up in pain every day.”

For more information about Versus Arthritis, visit the charity’s website at www.versusarthritis.org.