SHOPPERS at a Callington supermarket joined in a fifth birthday party recently, complete with cards, donkeys, beekeepers, the town crier and portreeve — all in aid of charity.

The anniversary of the opening of the town’s Tesco store in 2010 was marked by attractions, including balloons from Mr Bamboozle the Balloon Man, cards showing local scenes from Larissa’s Country Cards, a beekeeping display by W and M Pickles Beekeepers and donkeys from the Tamar Donkey Sanctuary. Proceeds from the event went to the British Heart Foundation and Diabetes UK.

David Gibbons, chairman of the Tamar Donkey Sactuary, said: ‘We were delighted to be able to bring two donkeys for petting in support of Callington Tesco’s charity day.

‘The two charities the store has chosen to support are also dear to my heart.

‘I worked as a cardiological technician for one of the founders of the BHF and I also exhibited in 1982 in The Hague and Assisi a prototype implantable insulin pump for the controlled infusion of insulin.’

Opening the ceremonies, Callington Portreeve Cllr Andrew Long said: ‘In the five years since Tesco came to Callington, they have become a major employer in the town and support many local charities through their work in the community.

‘We look forward to continuing this long and fruitful relationship with the area.’

The event was part of a three year partnership between Diabetes UK, the BHF and Tesco, aimed at helping to save lives by supporting millions of people to eat better and get active, reducing their risk of serious ill-health, as well as helping to fund their research.

To promote healthy eating, the store was also offering customers free fruit kebabs instead of slices of cake.

Store manager Martin Hawkins said: ‘We wanted to say thank you to our friends and neighbours in Callington, as well as to our loyal staff, for their terrific support over the years.

‘We would also like to thank the stall holders who volunteered their time to help raise money for charity and provide entertainment — and particularly Larissa Pinkham of Larissa’s Country Cards, who came on her 18th birthday to help us out with our fifth!’