November 20, 2005
Hundreds of supporters flock to hovercraft group’s Charity Night
Hundreds of supporters of Burnham-On-Sea’s rescue hovercraft flocked to a special event in the town on Saturday November 19th for an evening of fun and fundraising.
Hundreds of supporters of Burnham-On-Sea’s rescue hovercraft flocked to a special event in the town on Saturday night for an evening of fundraising and fun.
More than 300 people crowded into Burnham Holiday Village for the BARB Charity Night, when crewmembers and supporters marked the end of another busy summer season for the service.
The audience was entertained with live music from The Crooners, comedy from a Peter Kay tribute, and several auctions and raffles – with the total being raised amounting to £2,000.
BARB President Neville Jones presented Alan Miller, chairman of BARB, with a special award on behalf of the crew for his work with the group. Mr Miller was praised as being the “perfect Chairman.”
And Martin Cox, former operations manager at BARB and now operations manager of Burnham RNLI, thanked Mr Miller for the “incredible effort” he puts in behind the scenes.
Martin also told the audience about how the Spirit Of Lelaina hovercraft was set up – and how it has gone on to help and save more than 80 people during its first 18 months on service.
He also made a special mention to the Western Daily Press for its “invaluable” ongoing support.
Organisers Pete and Dee Emery, Simon Triggol and Paul Dudley said the event had been a “fantastic night” and thanked those who had supported and helped.
Pete added: “Everyone enjoyed themselves and several people have already asked when the next event will be held!”
Proceeds from the evening will go directly towards meeting the £20,000 annual cost of maintaining the craft and training its volunteer crew.
RELATED LINKS:
Official BARB Web site home page
